The impact of climate extremes on vegetable production in Eswatini

Abstract

<p>Climate change is manifested both through gradual shifts away from stable climatic circumstances and through climate-related extreme events. Climate change already affects human and natural systems and has put global food production at risk. African countries, most of which have agriculture-based economies, face significant challenges. Due to the lack of historical observation data in many countries on the continent, it is difficult to quantify the impact of climate change on agricultural production. Most of these "historical data" exist in people's memory. Therefore, having comprehensive survey data is of great importance for understanding the role of climate change. The Global Center on Adaptation (GCA) and the African Agriculture Technology Foundation (AATF) conducted joint research in Eswatini to study the impact of climate change on the vegetable sector. The researchers surveyed 370 farm households in four project areas. The survey contained a hundred questions in ten sections including family background, the agricultural production process, farming equipment, climate risk and adaptation strategies and digitalization. We analyze these data with statistical models to assess the impact of climate change on Eswatini's vegetable production and the potential for climate risk mitigation through adaptive production strategies.</p>