Climate-smart Agriculture Resists Drought in Kenya

Farmer Phoebe Mwangangi (left) helps to train other farmers in Makongeni village of Makueni County, Kenya, on Sept 14, as part of smart agricultural practices. XIE SONGXIN/CHINA DAILY

Farmers invest in smart agriculture to fight climate change

Faced with the reality of climate change effects that have seen crop yields and livestock production reduced significantly, leaving many families with increased cases of malnutrition, farmers in Makueni County, covering the arid and semiarid parts of Kenya, are embracing climate-smart agricultural practices to improve their harvests.

The smart agricultural practices and innovations are geared toward water harvesting, soil conservation and deep tillage with minimum soil disturbance. The practices include planting drought-tolerant crops, adopting agro-forestry, using agriculturally certified seeds and constructing terraces.