Climate-Resilient Livelihood Options in Drought-Prone Areas, Mozambique

Pilot Program for Climate Resilience (PPCR) in Mozambique: An Assessment of Climate Resilient Livelihood Options in Drought Prone Areas

Ministry for Development Planning, Mozambique, and the World Bank

Under the Pilot Program on Climate Resilience (PPCR) being implemented by the Government of Mozambique, six interior districts of Gaza Province in southern Mozambique (Chicualacuala, Mabalane, Guija, Chigubo, Northern Chibuto and Massangena) were identified as areas for the assessment of climate resilient livelihood options in drought prone areas. The focus was on the three main climate risks (floods, droughts, cyclones) and the four NAPA priorities (Republic of Mozambique, 2007), namely: strengthening early warning systems, strengthening the capacity of farmers to deal with climate change, reduction of the impacts of climate change along the coastal zone, and water resources management. These will be addressed in three different pilot areas, with the Limpopo River Basin (LRB) identified for drought (the primary risk) and NAPA priorities two (farming) and four (water).

The goal of this assignment under Mozambique’s PPCR is to provide the necessary understanding and recommendations for specific drought resilient interventions in the Limpopo basin. This is because low-cost strategies for mitigating negative climate change effects on land use systems in good conditions might play a more important role than costly measures to rehabilitate already degraded lands, and to increase their climate resilience. With extensive experience in the region, OneWorld undertook to identify best sustainable land and water management practices and options for diversification to improve rural resource-based livelihoods and provide resilience to climatic impacts, particularly drought, in these areas.

The report produced by OneWorld provides an evaluation of climate change impact on livelihoods (crops, forestry, livestock, water, fisheries) in these six selected districts. By identifying climate smart technology options in these drought-prone areas of Southern Mozambique, OneWorld provided key recommendations for feasible policy and legal frameworks for scaling-up climate smart technology options in these areas, diversifying livelihoods and building resilience to the impacts of climate change, and provided crucial insights into how to build capacity of local governments.

PUBLICATIONS

Assessment of Climate Resilient Livelihood Options in Drought Prone Areas of Mozambique.

Report prepared by OneWorld for the Ministry of Planning and Development and Ministry for Coordination of Environmental Affairs, Government of the Republic of Mozambique.