Sustainable Land Management for Mitigating Climate Change

SLM and Adaptation to Climate Change is crucial for most developing countries

12. While much work on CC has focused on mitigation, there is an urgent need to balance the approach with strong focus on adaptation, and especially so for SSA. The rationale for increase in focus on adaptation includes the following:

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  Least preparedness of stakeholders in many developing countries, especially in terms of institutional resources and capacity, to address the consequences of CC (the challenge of “adaptation”) or to tap into the numerous benefits of climate-friendly technologies (the “mitigation” challenge).
  
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  Widespread adoption of those land management practices (e.g., deforestation, biomass burning, land use conversion, soil degradation and desertification) which contribute to CC in most developing countries (especially in sub-Saharan Africa), even more so than emissions from fossil fuel. Thus, action on mitigation in such countries must necessarily concentrate on land use changes and avoided deforestation. Such a strategy will also have positive livelihood and development impact.
  

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  Furthermore, even if global C emissions were reduced in the near future, developing countries such as those in SSA would still be faced with the massive challenge of adapting to CC. Therefore, a broader approach is needed to tackle the challenges linked to CC, through responsive measures that prioritize adaptation via mainstream development programs including investments in SLM. Investing in SLM practices such as agro-forestry and perennial cover-cropping can improve the micro-climate, prevent soil erosion, sequester C and help strengthen the resilience of local environments to climate change risks (e.g., droughts).