Climate change in Ghana has become a threat to food security

 Climate change in Ghana has become a threat to food security

The climate change impacts in Western Region , Brong-Ahafo Region and Northern part of Ghana results in severe draughts in the dry season, severe floods, high temperatures, currently most parts of Northern Ghana is flooded and lost of agricultural products and farm crops is predicted to bring famine if measures are not put in place.

Climate change impacts are expected to reduce agricultural productivity, stability and incomes in many areas that already experience high levels of food insecurity.

The World Food Programme (WFP) said more than 680,000 people, representing 16 per cent of all households in the three northern regions, were considered either severely or moderately food insecure.

Presenting a Comprehensive Food Security and Vulnerability Analysis (CFSVA) Survey conducted in May 2012 which focused on northern Ghana, the WFP indicated that around 140,000 people or 3.3% of households were severely food insecure with the Upper East being the worst affected.

It noted that the survey randomly sampled 8,399 households in 38 districts and found out that 28% of the households in the Upper East were food insecure compared 10% in the Northern and 16% in the Upper West regions.

The survey indicated that literacy rates for those aged 15 and above for the Northern, Upper East and Upper West regions were 33%, 41% and 40% respectively compared with a corresponding national rate of 72%.

With climate change affecting agricultural productivity and growing populations demanding more food, it will be crucial for Government of Ghana to preserve and share genetic resources to ensure food security. Urgent and ambitious action is therefore imperative if we are to prevent dangerous climate change that threatens to cause enormous human suffering, undermine economic progress and poverty reduction, and trigger potentially catastrophic environmental changes.

 Government of Ghana has a crucial role to play by show leadership and must not only sign Climate change agreements but enforce them. According to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), global food production uses 25% of all habitable land and is responsible for 70% of fresh water consumption, 80% of deforestation, and 30% of greenhouse gas emissions. It is the largest single driver of biodiversity loss and land-use change.

There are as many as 30,000 edible terrestrial plant species in the world. However, only 30 crops account for 95 per cent of human food energy needs, with rice, wheat, maize, millet and sorghum amounting to 60 per cent of these.

About 75 per cent of crop genetic diversity was lost in the last century as farmers worldwide switched to genetically uniform, high-yielding varieties and abandoned multiple local varieties.

We cannot win the battle against climate change without the indigenous and scientific knowledge, raise awareness and public education on Climate change in the community.

Abibimman Foundation, AYICC –Ghana, GCAP-Ghana and IDAY-Ghana,

Kenneth Nana Amoateng 

Chief Executive Officer 

Abibiman Foundation 

 www.abibimmanfoundation.org/ Tel +233-303-213918, Mob:+233244023651