George Wamukoya wrote that, as suggested by a European negotiator earlier this year, asking Africa to reduce livestock populations to achieve global climate goals is not the answer to the climate change crisis.
George Wamukoya is the team leader of the African Negotiation Expert Support Group (AGNES), which was established in 2015 to provide scientific expertise to inform Africa’s common position in climate change negotiations
Africa’s cattle, sheep and goats seem to contribute disproportionately High level The reduction in greenhouse gas emissions relative to output is mainly due to the fact that the livestock production system on the African continent is still under-resourced and underdeveloped, and therefore inefficient.
These systems are also increasingly facing additional pressures from rising temperatures and shortages of water and forage.
Despite these restrictions, the average livestock accounted for about 40% It accounts for 30% to 80% of Africa’s agricultural GDP in individual countries, but this sector rarely receives more than 5% to 10% of agricultural investment and is often completely excluded from climate financing commitments.
The latest data shows that Africa’s livestock industry has received a small amount of overseas development assistance, or Approximately 33 million U.S. dollarsIn contrast, despite the local solutions, the financial support for renewable energy is still as high as nearly US$760 million.
Kenya alone needs one Estimated at $62 billion To achieve its goal of reducing emissions by one-third by 2030, the best opportunity comes from improving animal husbandry.
Just as Africa can power the African continent without relying on fossil fuels, Africa can also produce livestock, meat and milk in a variety of ways without harming the environment or accelerating climate change.
When negotiators go to the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26), we must realize that the environmental impact and sustainability of livestock are not static.Although the industry may contribute 14.5% In global emissions, these estimates are mainly based on data from the northern part of the world.
With a higher level of financial support, Africa has the opportunity to increase and improve animal husbandry production, release more animal husbandry benefits for mankind and prosperity, while minimizing the impact on the planet.
In addition, as one of the regions most severely affected by climate change, Africa can develop methods to adjust its livestock industry to deal with increasingly extreme and unpredictable conditions through solutions that increase resilience, such as: Mapping Through livestock data for decision-making.
For example, one of the main factors contributing to livestock emissions due to low productivity is Insufficient feed, Especially during droughts and drylands 40% Most of the land surface of the earth is used for raising livestock.
However, cows and goats can easily adapt from eating grass to eating cactus. This transition has Promotion in Madagascar, This year suffered a long-term drought and the world’s first climate-induced famine.
The use of cacti in livestock feed has also been proven Improve production The cash income from meat and milk also helps to reduce the use of groundwater, because the cactus uses water efficiently.
Another growing area of opportunity lies in taking advantage of Genetic superiority African sheep and goats breed livestock with higher heat tolerance.
Researchers hope to use animal genes, which over time and the development of natural selection in the hot and dry regions of Ethiopia have higher heat tolerance than breeds found in other parts of the country.
Higher heat resistance not only means that livestock need less water and shade, but also means greater potential for meat and milk production under extreme conditions.
As production becomes more stable during the drought, livestock farmers and herders can also benefit from new technological tools that provide them with access to markets and market information to maintain income.
Tools like this KaznitIt is a crowdsourcing platform that provides real-time information through text messages and mobile applications. It is becoming more and more popular as a way to help traders and manufacturers cope with market fluctuations caused by climate change.
Although many countries, companies and farmers elsewhere are transforming their livestock systems with climate adaptation and mitigation measures, Africa has a unique opportunity to use local knowledge to develop already critical sectors, thereby providing greater long-term The ability to withstand the threat of climate change. climate change.
Sustainable animal husbandry in Africa is not only beneficial to the people and the economy, but also conducive to combating climate change and contributing to the achievement of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDG).
But we cannot achieve this goal alone. So far, climate funding for animal husbandry has been insufficient.
When we look forward to the next milestone in global climate action after COP26, it is clear that if we have the opportunity to achieve our climate goals and the world’s climate goals, African countries need more livestock investment.
