Impact of climatic change on food systems along Lake Nyasa shore in Mbinga District

Abstract

This study was done in three villages along Lake Nyasa shore in Mbinga district to assess the impact of climate change on food systems. A sample of 90 randomly selected respondents of both farmers and fishermen were interviewed using a structured questionnaire so as to acquire their socio economic characteristics and all the matters related to climatic change food systems in their area. The research was conducted from July 2009 to June 2010. The data obtained were then coded and analysed by using SPSS computer program. The average respondent age was 37years, average household size was 4.7 and education status of the house hold was 23.3% have secondary education, 74.5% have primary education and 2.2% have no education. The average production of food crops was 5.5 tons per year. The most vulnerable aspect of food system according to this study was production followed by distribution, exchange and consumption. Despite this vulnerability of food systems it has also discovered that the group at most risk are women and children. People had some adaptations to climate change, and these are farm expansions, intensification of their agriculture through adapting to modern agriculture and introduction of new meal regime. The study also found that the community had some coping strategies like labour selling. I recommended several ways of reducing house hold vulnerability to climate change and these are first by increasing production through intensification of agriculture, secondly, by increasing economic access to food through empowering of local community by strengthening marketing situation, and thirdly through improvements of food distribution, through improvement of rural infrastructures especially roads.