‘Climate change-caused’ drought leaves Zambians on the cusp of hunger crisis

ITV News Science Correspondent Martin Stew visits Zambia to find out how much impact its drought is having on crucial crops

Words by Rhiannon Hopley

Zambia is facing its worst drought in 40 years, with a lack of rain leading to a 50% crop failure across the country.

Around 9.8 million people across 84 of the country’s 116 districts have been affected and food insecurity is growing.

This is a problem because 80% of people here rely on agriculture for their livelihood.

In Western Province where the drought has hit badly, we meet Nyambe Nyambe, a 21-year-old farmer with a two-year-old daughter to care for. She has lost all her crops.

“The crop failure this year has been devastating," she told us.

"When you compare it to past years, there’s always at least some harvest even when the weather has been bad. But this year, I have lost everything. They all dried up.”

The lack of food has driven her to eating leaves from around the edge of the field that she previously never knew were edible and unripe mangoes from the trees.

We are coming to the end of an El Niño weather cycle which naturally brings drier conditions to Central Africa. But the situation is being exacerbated by the effects of climate change as the country’s resilience is worn down.

Another farmer in the village, 43-year-old Ngebe Njamba, tells us it is the worst drought he has seen in his entire life and that he is feeling the change.

“Compared to my childhood and how we used to farm then, it is way more difficult now. I lost all my crops. I’m worried about hunger. I’m worried about what I will do,” he said.

Maize is the staple crop of Zambia, accounting for more than two thirds of the calorie intake of the nation and is the basis of the national food nshima, a thick porridge with vegetables.

However, maize is not surviving well in the drought conditions and nearly 2.2 million hectares of it have been lost, according to government figures.

In the Kalabo district in the west of the country, where temperatures at this time of year sit in the high 30s, the lack of maize growth means it is being brought to the region on relief trucks.

People queue for hours in the sun to get vouchers to purchase it.

Nalishuwa Maswabi is six months pregnant and for the last three mornings she’s walked for two hours to get to the district office to try and register for the support.

“I’m really worried about my baby. I am not so sure of what will happen because I’ve been hungry for days," she told us.

Zambia is one of southern Africa’s main producers and exporters of maize. However, this year, even commercial farmers are struggling.

Around 85% of the country’s electricity comes from hydropower and the drought has led to reservoir levels falling to an historic low, resulting in rolling power outages.

Graham Rae is a large scale commercial farmer. This year, he can only irrigate half his crops as he cannot power the irrigation pumps.

He said: “Yields have reduced most definitely. Maize and wheat are down fifty percent. All of that has impacted on our profitability. Power has tripled in cost.

"I would say in my farming history this is the worst year I’ve seen.”

The country is hoping for the rains which should come in October and November – but even if they do, the harvest won’t be ready until February at the earliest, creating a hunger gap in the interim.

There is also a risk that the rains could be heavy and with the ground as hard and dry as it is, that could lead to the type of severe flooding seen by other nations in the region like Kenya.

It could end up washing this year’s crops and topsoil away leading the further disaster.

At Yuka Mission Hospital in the west of the country, they are preparing beds in anticipation of an influx of malnutrition cases.

“The situation is tricky and worrisome” says Brian Nyambe, a nutrition specialist at the hospital.

“We are seeing a lot of cases escalating from the drought situation in the country. We don’t know how the rainy season will treat us, so even people who have had time to cultivate crops will have to wait for them to grow.

"We still have some months to come where people will be without food," he added.

Aid agencies are working with the government to mitigate the effects of drought. UNICEF’s Scaling up Nutrition Programme has trained local community volunteers to spot children who may be at risk of malnourishment and send them to clinics.

It allows early intervention. The children are given therapeutic food full of nutrients. So far it is working to keep cases of severe malnutrition down.

Mainza Kawanu from UNICEF Zambia says the support is crucial: “The climate crisis is not just an environmental catastrophe, it is a child rights emergency. 45% of children in Zambia are getting one meal a day.

"UNICEF is providing life-saving supplies, such as ready-to-use therapeutic foods to children in need. Preventing moderate malnutrition cases to transition into severe acute malnutrition cases is critical to prevent a full-blown crisis.”

Education is also being affected. Sandy Shawa the headteacher of Chipapa Primary School in Chilanga says they are seeing a drop in pupil numbers as children are forced to stay home from school to search out food and water for their families.

Those that do come are often hungry, affecting their concentration levels.

“As a teacher I am worried because we are likely to have most of the learners dropping out from school because of hunger. This is the challenge. If this is not controlled now, then we are going to have a disaster in terms of school going children.”

The school is currently providing a feeding programme supported by the charity World Vision as it tries to keep its pupils in school as much as it can.

If you drive through the centre of the capital Lusaka, you will see dozens of signs advertising borehole drilling as people look to get their own reliable sources of water.

But with so much demand and so little rain, the boreholes which used to sit around 50 metres are now being drilled up to 120 metres below ground.

The country had a bad outbreak of cholera last year and with water sources dwindling, the government and aid agencies worry there could be another rise in the disease.

Zambia produces the same amount of emissions in a year as the UK does in ten days. The government would like support from the international community to help provide funds for the country to update its infrastructure in the face of a changing climate.

“We’re in a precarious position with food security. The agricultural sector is dependant on rainfall and we haven’t had it” said Gabriel Pollen, the National Coordinator for Zambia’s Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit.

“Developing countries like Zambia are bearing the brunt of climate change. We’re at the frontlines of the impact of climate change as we see in this drought.

"Developed nations need to transition from mere talking to action on the ground. The support we receive at the moment is to help alleviate the immediate issues like food shortages but we need more long-term support to build resilience to help us better withstand climate change.”

For now, Zambia awaits and hopes for the rains – but even if they do come, it will provide short term relief.

Climate change is affecting the way of life here, demanding a raft of changes. It will not be a quick fix.

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