The Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) has predicted a drier than usual season for the October-December period for much of the East African region. AGRA’s Food Security Monitor provides an overview assessment of the food security outlook in countries in East, West and Southern Africa, taking into account the movement of prices of main food staples and government interventions that impact on domestic and regional food trade alongside the impact of forecast weather changes and environmental conditions on food security. This has seen the Ministry of Agriculture encourage farmers in parts of Rwanda most likely to be affected to take appropriate measures to harvest enough rainwater for irrigation in case of need. According to the Ministry, depending on present seasonal forecasts for the months of September to December 2021, in parts of the Southern Province and the districts of Bugesera, Kirehe, and Ngoma in the Eastern Province it is expected that rainfall will decrease compared to the amounts usually received in agricultural season A. Farmers in these regions of the country were also encouraged to cultivate plants that grow faster and also put much emphasis on tapping and storing rainwater which will be used when the rains are not enough. Season A starts in September every year with planting of crops like maize, beans, cassava, Irish potatoes, and ends in February. This is among other things an effect of climate change on agriculture productivity which has made it hard to rely on rain as has been the case traditionally. This is a reminder of the need to adopt more innovation, science to enhance food security even amid unpredictable rain patterns. This will among other things involve rain water harvesting, research to introduce crop varieties that are more resistant to fluctuating weather patterns as well as increasing crop cover. This will among other things be achieved by having younger people involved in the sector who will steer the innovation.
