Adverse effect of climate change on agricultural sector

Climate change includes major changes in temperature, precipitation or wind patterns among other effects that occur over several decades or longer periods of time. Climate change is very likely to affect food security at the global, regional, and local levels.

On the other hand, Global warming refers to the ongoing rise in global average temperature, mostly as a result of exaggerated levels of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. These sudden changes in the climate results have led to lower levels of agricultural productivity. Moreover, increasing temperatures can contribute to spoilage and contamination. More can be read here.

According to the Global Environment Facility SGP (small grants program), awareness about climate change impacts on livelihood, is lacking among farmers in Sri Lanka. Additionally, local government officials engaged in water management and agriculture extension lack sufficient knowledge on related topics as well. As a result, farmers are not getting adequate support to adapt to changes in rainfall patterns and seasons.

Farmers need proper advice on crop choice, water saving methods or diversification of livelihoods so that dependence on rainfall would be minimized. However, year after year, farmers cultivate the same crop combinations, depending on seeds imported by the private sector.

Furthermore, local cultivators rely heavily on agrochemical suppliers to provide them with information and advice on managing threats related to their crops. This trend has resulted in deep indebtedness among rural households.

Also farming communities lack a disposable income for capital investments required to be resilient in facing threats of climate change. Furthermore, even though these communities are willing to take action to reduce their vulnerability, they feel that the barriers are too great to be overcome by themselves. Access the full paper here  archived.

A severe macro-economic crisis in Sri Lanka has caused acute shortages and spikes in the prices of essential products. This includes food, agricultural inputs, fuel and medicine which severely compromises the economic activity, with major disruptions to agricultural production.

The main staple food in Sri Lanka, the rice production is forecasted to be at 3 million mt in 2022. This is the lowest level since the 2017 drought-affected harvest. Current situation was however mostly a result of low yields following reduced application of fertilizers.

Production of maize, mostly used as animal feed, is about 40 percent below the past five-year average level. Additionally, there are negative effects on poultry and livestock production. Likewise, production of vegetables, fruits and export-oriented crops, such as tea, rubber, coconut and spices, are also well below average, causing a significant decline in households’ income and export revenues.

Prices of most food items have been on a steady rise since the last quarter of 2021 and reached a new record high in August 2022. This leaves the year-on-year food inflation rate at nearly 94 percent. Read the full article here archived.  

GDP (gross domestic product) from Agriculture in Sri Lanka decreased to 218,674 LKR Million in the second quarter of 2022 from 219,263 LKR in the first quarter. (Source: Department of Census and Statistics – Sri Lanka)  

 With the fertilizer ban imposed in 2020, paddy production in Sri Lanka had fallen 40 percent in the 2021 Maha season. The ban was lifted on November 31st , 2021 and National Fertilizer Secretariat data showed that 103,832 MT of fertilizers have been imported since then. Even though the government has led to purchase fertilizer, importers were unable to open letters of credit due to lack of foreign exchange. Read more about this here, archived.

Drought weakens agricultural production, food consumption and the investment capability of farm households. Additionally, increasing indirect costs such as those arising in relation to healthcare. Thus, immediate measures, particularly income mediating policies to provide compensation to drought-affected families are required. This will help avoid multiple impacts of drought to farm households and to the provincial economy.

Moderate warming and more carbon dioxide in the atmosphere may help some plants to grow faster. However, more severe warming, floods, and drought may reduce yields. Livestock may be at risk, both directly from heat stress and indirectly from reduced quality of their food supply. Read more about this here   

A few years ago, there were heavy persistent rains during August to September, but it has been altered nowadays. There were sudden torrential rains in August yet now it is no more. More can be read from here Archived.

When investigating this, a research study showed the increased tendency of annual rainfall over Sri Lanka at present. All studies used observed data from the meteorological department of Sri Lanka. It also showcased the increasing rainfall patterns during North East Monsoon (NEM), particularly toward the eastern zones. In contrast, most of the studied manuscripts indicated the decreasing tendency of South West Monsoon rainfall over the country. Thus, increasing rainfall during NEM, First Inter Monsoon and total annual rainfall is most probable in near future.  Read more about this  here archived.

A number of technical best practices can be acknowledged such as seed and crop selection. Furthermore, agronomic practices such as improving soil quality, crop-livestock integration, land management, water harvesting and improving kitchen gardens can successfully be undertaken. These changes may enhance the knowledge of marginalized farmers mainly on resilient agriculture and water management.  

The main crop of the country is paddy. However, there was a considerable extent of arable lands and a significant proportion of them have not been cultivated within a long period of time. This is due to various reasons such as land abandonment and rejection due to poor soil nutrients (asweddumized paddy land). According to the agriculture and environment statistics division’s survey,  2123859 acres (859514 hectares) of asweddumized paddy lands were identified last year.

Paddy cultivation in Maha season is significantly higher than the Yala season in Sri Lanka. Moreover, no paddy cultivation is carried out during the Yala season in Jaffna district. Also, It is not necessary to cultivate total asweddumized areas in each season for the fulfilment of the consumption requirements of the country. Read more about this here  archived.  

According to the national adaptation plan for climate change impact in Sri Lanka, the government has mentioned several steps to execute during 2016 -2025 under various categories . Visit for the full report here 

Finally, the younger generation have to be motivated for this national task by providing appreciable incentives. Introduction of modern techniques and equipment to this field are also critically important for the future of agriculture in Sri Lanka. 

ලංකාවේ කෘෂිකාර්මික අංශයට අහිතකර ලෙස බලපාන දේශගුණික විපර්යාස