Food System and Adapting to Global Environmental Changes in RTB basin Nepal

1. Food System and Adapting to Global Environmental Changes in RTB basin Nepal Ajaya Dixit, MadhukarUpadhya and Kanchan Mani Dixit Nepal Water Conservation Foundation New Delhi 2009

2. RTB Basin in Indo-Ganga Plains (IGP III) Study Districts Kapilvastu Rupandehi Nawalparasi

3. Characteristics Major crops grown Paddy is the major crops grown by about 98 percent of the households. 60 per cent of land has seasonal irrigation facility Use of technology Farming tools and technology are mostly traditional. Only 10 percent farmers use modern methods of farming. Employment About two third dependent on agriculture Rest on business, service and wage labor Low in industries Monsoon flood is recurrent Increasing trend of out-migration Ponds and wetland are gradually being encroached

4. Food System Activities

5. Climate Change Impact

6. Vulnerability Assessment of Food System(Food utilization)

7. Vulnerability Assessment of Food System (Access)

8. Vulnerability Assessment of Food System (Availability)

9. Movement of food items in out of RTB Basin Settlements along southern border import food from India also export. Import volume far exceeds export.

10. Actors Activities Outcomes Producing • Access • Affordability • Allocation • Preference State Private sectors Processing/ packaging • Availability • Production • Distribution • Exchange NGO/ civil society Distributing retailing/selling • Utilization • Nutritional value • Social values • Food safety Householder/ farmers Consuming

11. Our approach • Adaptation is more than coping. In a well adapted system people and the environmental and other features they value should do better • Baseline survival is not the objective but continued development and improvement in the quality of life is • Adaptation is ability to shift strategies • And such strategies should not lead to ill effects or no mal-adaptation (socio-economic or environmental)

12. We need to make distinctions Planned adaptation: Proactive identification of climate impacts and taking specific, often carefully targeted, steps to respond. Most government and donor interventions focus on planned adaptation Attribution is essential Autonomous Adaptation: What populations “do” in response to the selective pressures and opportunities they face. Most “action” are likely to be autonomous Larger systems help adaptation

13. Institutions, organizations and networks Systems: Physical, Social, and Knowledge: early warning Core Systems: Water Food Energy Ecosystems Governance Social Protection Conceptualizing Adaptation Framework Adapted from GAT (2008)

14. Research issues identified in RTB Basin • The vulnerability of distributional system to GECs and on food system outcomes. • Cross country comparison of policies (India; Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Nepal) as they relate to food system outcomes. • Early warning system combining modern and locally based • mechanism. • Identify barriers to successful health related planned and • autonomous adaptation to GEC stressor. • Understanding the role migration and factors driving it has to identify tangible both course of action for vulnerable communities and managing other impacts of GECs. • The role of conserving and expanding wetlands to serve as flood and storm buffers as well as food production and source of livelihood for marginalized communities.

15. Issues Identified for further broad research • Improved strategies for decision-making in an uncertain future. • The strength and impediments for effective horizontal linkages between different agencies, and vertically between local, meso, and national levels to enable flexible policies and practice to enable adaptation. • How do link between penetration of basic energy, water, transport, finance, health, communication and other infrastructure, diversification of livelihoods and the ability to shift strategies as condition changes contribute to household food security.

16. Thank You