Climate change is posing several challenges to agriculture in Pakistan, including water scarcity, changing precipitation patterns, and increased pest infestations. These factors can affect crop production and yield and can also threaten food security in the country.
Fayaz Hussain
Pakistan is an agricultural country with a large portion of its population relying on agriculture for their livelihood. Climate change is affecting agriculture in Pakistan in several ways, including:
In summary, climate change is affecting agriculture in Pakistan in several ways, including water scarcity, crop yield reduction, pest and disease outbreaks, soil erosion, and food security. Addressing these challenges requires a concerted effort from the government, farmers, and other stakeholders to adopt sustainable agricultural practices and mitigate the impact of climate change.
Climate change is affecting not just rainfall intensity but also the amount of annual rainfall. Many parts of the country are receiving less than 250 mm rainfall per annum that requires further enhancement of farming and irrigation infrastructure including irrigation channels, canals, and dams for water storage. Pakistan falls in the geographical area where the productivity of crops will drop sharply. A study points out that in Pakistan climate change will decrease agricultural productivity by 8-10% till 2040 and wheat will be one of the major losers. The ranges and distribution of weeds and pests are likely to increase with climate change. This could cause new problems for farmers' crops previously unexposed to these species. Though rising CO2can stimulate plant growth, it also reduces the nutritional value of most food crops. Threat to coastal areas due to projected sea level rise and increased cyclonic activity due to higher sea surface temperatures; Increased stress between upper riparian and lower riparian regions in relation to sharing of water resources; Increased health risks and climate change induced migration. Cultivable land that is irrigatable is only Pakistan has 28 percent, compared to 80 percent in India. This is because of the lack of an efficient water management system and poor infrastructure. The management of crop production presents many challenges for Pakistani farmers, including the absence of soil testing on farms, the unavailability and poor quality of fertilizers, loss during harvest, a lack of warehouses, machinery, and equipment, and, above all, a deterioration in soil fertility. Pakistan ranks amongst the top of those nations where vulnerability index due to climate changes is very high. At present the country's GHG emissions are increasing at an annual rate of 6 % or 18.5 million tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) equivalents. Pakistan is responsible for less than 1 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions and yet is among the top 10 most vulnerable countries to climate change.
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