By Wael Salem For some time now, the weather across the country has been very changeable, varying between being extremely cold and wet to being very hot, with sandstorms. This has led to a reduction in crop yields, and an increase in the pressure on food security, water stress and drought. Various attempts have been made in recent years to quantify the possible effects of climate change on Egypt. According to a recent report by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in association with the Egyptian government and various other UN agencies, agricultural production could decrease by eight to 47 per cent by 2060, with employment losses of up to 39 per cent, as a result of the loss of agricultural land and temperature rises. The Agricultural Research Centre said in a recent statement that climate change would also lead to a drop-in grain production. The production of wheat, for example, will decrease by nine per cent by 2030 and 20 per cent by 2060. Agricultural experts predict that global warming and continuous climate change will also cause desertification to increase in years to come, leading to severe food shortages in the country, as happened in Sudan, and Somalia. Dr Moustafa Kaoud, a professor at the Faculty of Agriculture, Suez Canal University, said climate change would doubtless alter the biological features of may crops. He told Akher Sa'a magazine that the current agricultural policies and methods should be modified by the agricultural research centres, to accelerate the growth rates of agricultural products. This means that investments in those centres should be doubled. Dr Sarhan Samir, a professor at the Agricultural Economics Research Institute (AERI), agrees with Dr Kaoud. He stressed that climate change was having a negative effect on sustainable and comprehensive development in Egypt. Samir added that weather fluctuations and climate change may lead to economic loss. The drop in agricultural production as a result of global warming and high temperatures will lead to a big rise in the price of food worldwide. Agriculture offers a genuine opportunity to transition to a green economy, since it provides the world with food, fibre and fuel. In Egypt, the agricultural sector is the largest provider of employment and opportunities for environmental stewardship. "So, the government should take positive steps to counter climate change and global warming so as to stop crops, cattle and poultry from being harmed," Dr Samir said. "Farmers should be urged to cultivate crops that can resist high temperatures and water shortages," he noted. The Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation recently adopted several measures to eliminate the impact of climate change on agricultural land and crop production. The ministry has recommended spreading the cultivation of water-conscious crops such as quinoa, which needs much less water to cultivate than rice and wheat. While rice, on average, requires 6,000 cubic metres of water per feddan, quinoa needs less than 500 cubic metres. The ministry also urged raising awareness of the threat that climate change poses to agriculture and the different measures needed to protect agriculture. Egypt is highly vulnerable to the effects of climate change and faces numerous threats to its economic, social and environmental sustainability, including a drop in the supply of energy, water and food. The recent, rapid change in the country's weather has not only affected crop production, it is likely to increase agricultural pests, according to several parliamentarians (MPs), who demanded a new strategy be drawn up to deal with the ongoing climate change. The MPs said that the government needs to provide alternate agricultural crops which consume less water than the volume currently used by farmers. They also called for developing different irrigation systems and instructing farmers how best to take care of their land. MP Shereen Farag told Akher Sa'a magazine that the ministry needs to draw up and announce a proactive plan to deal with the early stages of climate change and beyond. "The government needs to study the causes of climate change and how it will affect our land and crop yields," Farag said. Scientists in different disciplines especially that of plant cultivation, should carry out more studies to produce crops capable of withstanding high temperatures and drought. This is a step urgently needed to stop desertification and a falling off of food crops, MP Farag said. The bodies concerned are urged to introduce new strategies and working plans to cope with the possible effects of a permanent change in the country's weather, he added. MP Ahmed Abdel Wahed shared Farag's point of view and said that the government should have a clear plan to face possible extended periods of rainfall and humidity. Developing countries are particularly affected by climate change as they are mostly located in regions that are susceptible to its impact; and they lack the financial resources and technological expertise to adapt to it.
