CLIMANDES-2 - Climatic Services with Emphasis on the Andes in Support of Decisions Phase 2
Project Abstract
Background
The impact of climate variability on livelihood systems is currently gaining increasing scientific and public interest due to the ongoing debate on climate change. In this context, sustainable, climate-resilient agricultural production may contribute substantially to occupation, food security and nutrition and population health.
Objectives and Aims
CLIMANDES-2 aims at developing user-tailored climate services for the agricultural sector in the Andean region of Peru with respect to user needs and requirements. The agricultural sector is specifically sensitive to climate variability and change. Due to change in climate patterns, traditional indicators based on indigenous knowledge become less reliable for agricultural decision-making. The ongoing improvement of climate models driven by evolving computer capacity and progress in natural science should lead to the complementation of traditional knowledge with accurate science-based climate information for improved farmer’s decision making to combat the negative impacts of climate variability and change. The project is funded by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation and implemented by the Federal Office of Meteorology and Climatology (MeteoSwiss). SwissTPH provides technical assistance and training in the area of socio-economic research related to the project’s scope.
Methods/Approaches
A mixed-methods approach will be used to assess climate-related vulnerability and risk patterns, management options and coping strategies of smallholder farmers in Puno in order to understand the socio-economic potential of climate services. In a first step, a scoping study will be performed based on qualitative methodology in order to get a better understanding of the study context (i.e. agricultural production in the region of Puno). In a second step, a cross-sectional study and quantitative analysis will be used to investigate key indicators based on a representative sample of smallholder farmers. To explore the determinants of the key variables such as climate-related risk exposure, individual risk preferences and willingness to pay for climate services multivariate regressions will be performed.
Results
With this case study it is expected to learn more about specific vulnerability patterns of smallholders which will guide the implementation of climate adaptation measures (climate services) in the study region. Current results will be compared to a further field study at a later stage when services are in operation in order to evaluate the impact of the project.
Target Groups
Climate services developed for the region of Puno will be targeted to the agricultural sector which is dominated by smallholding farming. Due to the geographical location of Puno, farmers are exposed to difficult growing conditions. The high-plateau around the basin of Lake Titicaca lies about 3’800-4’500 m a.s.l.. At this altitude, growing season is short, the climate is semi-arid to arid and crops are endangered by frost, droughts and heavy rainfalls. Smallholder farmers typically operate with limited resources and are frequently exposed to food insecurity due to substantial crop losses. In light of current initiatives aimed at strengthening provisions of climate services for the most vulnerable population, the present results represent a first step based on economic valuation in indicating a direction for policy design related to a potential implementation of climate services in less developed countries.
