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Climate change impact leaves Mali villagers high and dry

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Climate change impact leaves Mali villagers high and dry

Written by Jayashree NANDI

Saturday, 19 September 2009

By Jayashree NANDI, The Times of India

Bamako (Mali) 20 Sep - Sali Samake is the most important person in the small Malian village of Tamale, near the capital city of Bamako.

Villagers depend on her to plan their harvest because this 45-year-old is the only one to use a pluviometer — rain-measuring instrument. Mali, one of the poorest African nations, is now facing another danger, that of climate change. Desertification in some parts of the region is intensifying year after year, leaving farmers defenceless to the crisis.

DIP IN RAINFALL

Most parts of West Africa, including Mali, have seen a sharp decrease in rainfall since 1970, and consecutive years of droughts till date. There has been 20% decrease in annual rainfall; water level in rivers has decreased by 40% to 60%. The interior delta of river Niger has almost halved, from 37,000 sqkm in 1950 to 15,000 sqkm now.
    According to studies by the ministry of environment, Mali, temperature in water bodies has risen, leading increase in invading plant species. Fishing, navigation and irrigation have become tough. The scanty, still water is the breeding home to malarial mosquitoes, and there has been increase in the incidence of meningitis too.
    Rainy season comes and goes at will. “Now, farmers don’t know when they have to plant. The season is shorter. This has had a huge impact on the agro-economy, leading to migration of the young. Families are sending their people to other parts of Africa, Europe and America to earn income for the family,” says secretaire technique permanent, Boubacar Sidibi Dembele.
    Even as Mali villagers live with disease and acute water crisis, they exude a vibrant spirit of life. Young girls come rushing towards tourist vehicles to sell a native delicacy of sesame and honey sticks; women sell fresh bananas and fruits.

ADAPTING TO CLIMATE CHANGE

The region is taking baby steps to adjust to climate change: it’s offering manual training kits to farmers; the meteorological department is working with ryots to provide them better forecast and exchange information. The cloud-seeding programme is on since 2006. This year alone, there have been 1,000 operations, especially in the northern Kai, Kolokani and Sahelian regions.
    Cloud-seeding timetables are announced regularly on national television; 25 literate persons have been nominated from different villages who can use the pluviometer and inform farmers about rainwater availability. “The pluviometer helps us know how much of rain we’ll get and we can estimate our production accordingly. The village head consults me and plans the harvest with other villagers,” says Sali.
    Even as Mali could be one of the first casualties of climate change, justice is still far away for its denizens, say activists. They can only hear about the forthcoming climate negotiations in Copenhagen (COP 15) for developed nations to accept targets and share real technology, which is now locked by intellectual property rights (IPR) and patents of big companies.
    (This correspondent was in Mali at the invitation of Media 21, Global Journalism Network)

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ORIGINAL ARTICLE (Bangalore edition Sep 20,section global)

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