Long

Short-term reactive practices are control options for pests and diseases once they have reached a level where the economic losses are likely to be greater than the cost of controlling the pest/disease outbreaks and can be used to maintain or increase production. Pests and diseases are better detected at an earlier stage to make it easier to act and prevent severe crop losses and prohibit the spread of pests and diseases throughout the whole field, achieved through regular and systematic field inspections. The practice is considered climate smart as it reduces losses, which in-balance lowers greenhouse gas emissions per tonne of crop produced, it retains agricultural productivity through management of pest infestation and/or disease outbreaks, and is applicable as it can assist farmers adjust to changing climate, and the threat of new and changing pest diseases.

A push pull system is a technique that repels parasitic plants and pests that attach themselves to the crop roots and feed on them.. In push-pull, a cereal crop is intercropped with a leguminous plant like desmodium or molasses grass, while a popular fodder crop, Napier grass, is planted as a border around the field. Desmodium produces volatile chemicals that attract predators of the cereal e.g of maize pests. More importantly, by giving a false distress signal to the moths that the area is already infested, these chemicals ‘push’ the egg laying moths away from the crop to seek out habitats where their larvae will face less competition for food. Napier grass also produces volatile chemicals that ‘pull’ the moths towards them, and then exudes a sticky substance that traps the stem borer larvae as they feed. Few larvae survive. Napier grass attracts stem borer predators.  The intercropping is a climate smart practice as it mitigates emission of Greenhouse gases through the reduced need for pesticides. The push-pull system improves food security and boosts farm income.

Cultural pest control practices Are pest control management measures to control pests (insects, diseases, weeds) by manipulation of the environment or implementation of preventive practices including using plants that are resistant to pests, raising the mowing height of pastures to shade out weeds, aerating pastures to reduce compaction and plant stress. Several beneficial cultural practices can meet both demands, helping with pest and disease control and minimizing the use of toxic chemicals. In the insect pest management context, cultural practices may be considered as specific crop production practices that may be implemented either in the initial stages of the organic farm plan but also as a continuous plan to reduce the likelihood of insect pest infestation to a crop and damage. They form part of the Integrated Pest management (IPM) Practices and are based on tactics to disrupt pest infestation of crops by having the crop unavailable to pests in space and time, making the crop unacceptable to pests by interfering with host preference or location, reducing pest survival on the crop by enhancing natural enemies, altering the crop’s susceptibility to pests. The tactics or methods used in IPM include one or a combination of the following: Cultural control (crop rotation, use of locally adapted or pest resistant/tolerant varieties, sanitation, manipulating planting/harvest dates to avoid pests). Cultural pest control or IPM results in reduced pests/diseases and increased yields and is a climate-smart practice as its emphasis of prevention helps to control pests and diseases before they occur;  its continuous long-term practices without use of chemicals encourage healthier and more pest resilient crops and landscapes, encouraging the use of beneficial insects  making it an adaptation benefit. The possibility of prediction and recognition of pest outbreaks enables earlier management consultations and decisions. The reduction in losses results in lower GHG emissions per tonne produced.

Vaccination is the administration of immunisation injections to animals in order to prevent, control spread of diseases.  Vaccination campaigns involve administration of vaccine doses to a large population over a short period of time. The veterinary services departments or equivalent of respective countries normally gives free vaccinations to the farming community's animals for diseases which are of either economic significance to people's livelihoods or those that maybe of zoonotic importance (communicable to man from animals). These campaigns are usually fully funded by the government, NGOs to reduce disease outbreaks, prevent spread of an outbreak or improve national herd productivity, and are designed to reach as much livestock as possible. In most countries, free vaccinations are offer for the following diseases: Anthrax(-Cattle), Quarter evil or black quarter disease (Cattle), Contagious abortion (Cattle), Rabies (Dogs & Cats), Foot and Mouth Disease(Cattle)_ as per OIE designation in Disease Control Zones.

 For the message to reach farmers, community radios and involvement of traditional leadership can be used to encourage farmers to participate in vaccination campaigns.  This will help to gain trust and confidence from farmers for the campaign to be successful. Vaccination campaigns is a climate smart practice as it ensures a healthy population able to utilize feed efficiently with a reduced population discharge thus reduced GHG emission.

Resistant breeds Disease resistance is the reduction of pathogen growth in or in a plant or animal; denoting less disease development in a particular breed than that which is relatively susceptible and is specific to a particular strain of disease or attribute. Breeding resistant breeds  . Resistance” means the animal actively fights infection by various means. Building resistant breeds can be done through selection. Selective breeding, sometimes called artificial selection, where different breeds of animals with desired characteristics or attributes like resistance to. drought, heat, cold, salinity, flood, submergence and pests can be developed by selective breeding and thus able to relatively thrive in some conditions which would otherwise not be able to, e.g. This assists in the reduction of diseases, results in healthier productive animals and reduces risk of secondary infections in livestock. These breeds create a potential for more efficient conversion of feed into meat or diary, and thus a climate smart attribute since by reducing emissions per unit of production (proportionately less faeces are dropped per unit consumption of feed) as well as contributing to food security.,. In the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region, local breeds are more resistant to many of the pests and diseases and may be the best option for some farmers in the Arid and semi-arid areas of the region.

Vectors are organisms that carry diseases from one living being to another without showing symptoms of the diseases themselves. Some of the most common forms of vectors are blood sucking insects such as mosquitos, fleas, lice, ticks and other similar insects, and rats/rodents. Places such as stagnant water and dumping sites can be ideal habitats for vectors to reside and transmit. The use of natural vector predators can help reduce or eliminate vector populations. The most common vectors in southern Africa are insects (tsetse flies-trypanosomiasis), animals (foot and mouth disease through cattle or people with contaminated shoes), tick-borne relapsing fever (TBRF) and Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever (CCHF).  Sanitising the life-cycle of vectors, implementing pest traps and introducing pest predators are means of reducing the spread of disease. The impacts of climate change, especially increased heavy rainfall and higher temperatures can encourage vector populations to grow quicker than normal. Simple strategies to control vectors includes keeping livestock surroundings clean, avoiding livestock access to stagnant water, fencing areas off, restricting animal access to certain locations, can all control biological vectors and assist in reducing vector spread.

Species diversification involves a shift from a single species of livestock to more species in an attempt to manage risk and explore more resilient livestock farming options. Species diversification can be introduced in response to changes in local environment/climate conditions, including increasing temperatures, unreliable sources of water and availability of pasture, etc. The aim of this approach is to explore the introduction of species that may be more viable and adaptable in changing local conditions thus improving production levels by keeping animals that will be productive under harsh weather conditions and sustain the quality of the produce. Diversification as a climate smart practice assists farmers with utilising available resources more effectively, e.g. mixing grazers and browsers. Species that react well to changing climatic conditions may cause a shift of demand from grazers to browsers. This practice mitigates disease control, can improve soil fertility and increase water management. Government policies can also influence farmers in diversifying their species with many countries dedicating agricultural research and extension to explore the introduction of different species (e.g. cattle to goats) to assist farmers. It is important that species that are introduced do not have an adverse impact on local fauna or the surrounding environment.

Cut and carry is the agricultural practice of cutting and carrying fodder crops away from the field that they are grown in to feed to livestock. Fodder trees, shrubs or grasses are sources for livestock feed in this practice. Cut and Carry is a key CSA practice where overgrazing is a problem. This practice takes pressure off grazing land at critical periods, reduces land degradation caused by livestock and increases soil organic matter, while still feeding livestock for productive outcomes. This practice can also be used in more intensive livestock production where livestock are kept housed for periods stretching from half a year to a year and improved nutrition is required. However, fodder production can be costly in terms of cultivation, requiring significant management over and above the livestock themselves. Fodder is collected from sites where it grows naturally, or it can be grown in fodder banks, hedges, boundaries, etc. Feeding livestock using this approach can ensure the supply of a large quantity of high quality and palatable fodder within a short time, as well ensuring soil is not disturbed through open grazing systems, thus a good CSA practice. It can be adapted to the farmer’s needs and can provide a way of introducing the farmer to the concept of improving livestock at the same time as conserving soil.

Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration (FMNR) is a technique of restoring degraded land and monitoring restoration of the land involving the systematic regeneration and management of trees and shrubs from tree stumps, roots and seed. Degraded arid land often features left over indigenous plants, which if maintained and promoted to grow can improve pasture and crop lands while simultaneously encouraging re-growth of seeds, roots and shrubs. Key to this practice is the existence of living stumps, tree roots and seed that, if encouraged, will regrow. The land is protected from being completely cleared or further grazed and this allows trees to grow without disturbance. Once the stumps and trees start to grow, pruning and trimming of trees is required to allow space between trees and promote healthy long tree trunks. Once the trees have matured, intercropping can take place or livestock can be re-introduced to graze.

While requiring some investment in terms of effort, FMNR has climate smart advantages such as controlling rainfall/irrigation run-off, supporting water quality improvements, providing sources of timber or fodder, supporting habitant regeneration for pollinator insect species, acting as sun shade, and reducing soil erosion.

A permeable rock dam is a water harvesting technique where flooding rain water is collected in valley bases or other depressions to irrigate crops later/elsewhere, filling in gullies, controlling water flows, increasing crop production and reducing soil erosion.. Permeable rock dams are long and relatively shallow to reduce erosion while accumulating silt and distributing water. They comprise of long low rock walls with smooth crests so that water can spread to avoid overflow from the dam. However, this technology is site specific; it cannot be practiced in areas where there are no rocks/stones and means of transporting these building materials. The impoundment of silt prior to runoff entering a watercourse can be beneficiary to downstream users and can contribute to improved water quality in the catchment