Addressing loss and damage of agrifood systems to protect poor
In September 2024, a series of devastating floods, driven by cyclone YAGI and the intense Southwest monsoon wreaked havoc across Philippines, Myanmar, Lao PDR, Thailand and Viet Nam. As the month ended, Kathmandu received one-fifth of its average annual rainfall in just 48 hours that caused unprecedented floodings. With over 200 lives lost and widespread social and economic devastation, agrifood systems in this region have been hit the hardest, deepening the vulnerabilities of already marginalized communities and exacerbating their existing challenges.
Unmitigated vulnerabilities across boundaries
Flooding is a persistent problem in Nepal and India, particularly in the Indian state of Bihar, where half a dozen rivers originating from Nepal have perennially been flood prone. The Kosi and Gandak river basins, which traverse these transboundary areas, frequently transmit floods from Nepal into bordering areas of Bihar. Asia-Pacific Disaster Report 2019 identifies these transboundary river-basins as multi-hazard risk hotspots where disaster risks intersect with poverty, inequality and environmental degradation. It is crucial to highlight the socio-economic vulnerabilities in this region, where livelihoods are heavily dependent on agrifood systems, amplifying the impacts of these disasters.
Bihar located in India’s vulnerable terai belt the Nepal border is one of India’s most climate vulnerable states. According to India’s 2021 National Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI), Bihar has the highest proportion of people living in multidimensionally poverty. The MPI mirrors in Bihar’s low composite score on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as highlighted in NITI Aayog’s SDG India Index Report, particularly in areas like poverty, hunger, gender equality, industry, innovation and infrastructure, reduction in inequalities and climate action. Every monsoon, floods devastate agrifood systems in Bihar, disrupting livelihoods, agriculture and livestock. Beyond economic losses, the non-economic toll is significant, including large-scale migration, displacement, and the loss of lives.
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Who bears the brunt of climate induced loss and damage?
The ongoing floods in Bihar have affected nearly 1.5 million people, hitting the poor and vulnerable the hardest. Although they account for only a fraction of overall climate-induced loss and damage, they disproportionately bear the consequences. Disasters affect people in different ways, losing $1 has a far greater impact on the poor than on the non-poor. For the poor, such losses deeply affect their well-being, leading to reductions of up to 60 per cent in consumption, including spending on essentials like food, education, and healthcare. This disproportionate burden of disasters on the poor is a key factor contributing to Bihar's multi-dimensional poverty.
The world attribution study shows “fingerprints” of climate change on this extreme monsoon rainfall in South Asian floods. ESCAP analysis indicates that with temperature increases of 1.5°C and 2°C, South Asia will face the highest impact of heavy precipitation. South Asia is a "climate crisis hotspot" where people are 15 times more likely to lose their lives due to climate change impacts.
Resilient agrifood systems can address loss and damage associated with poor and vulnerable
Small and marginal farmers are the key stakeholders of the agrifood system which is increasingly at risk. While the agrifood system is gradually integrating into global value chains, these farmers in many developing countries remain both the producers and primary consumers of the food they grow. Addressing climate induced loss and damage in agrifood systems is key to protecting the poor and vulnerable. To achieve this, two strategic actions are suggested:
Let's take transformative action
Incremental adaptation actions to agrifood systems, while important, will be insufficient to avert dramatic increases in loss and damage as seen in Bihar. Instead, greater commitments to plan, fund, and implement transformative adaptation measures will be essential to build a resilient agrifood system. Implementing transformative adaptation entails rapid and far-reaching transitions across all sectors associated with agrifood systems. It must be implemented in multi-hazard hotspots where forced adaptation is forecast to occur. It requires strengthening synergies between disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation and adjusting agricultural production systems to changing landscapes and ecosystems. The initiative of Dr Rajendra Prasad Central Agricultural University on scaling up climate smart agriculture through mainstreaming climate smart villages of perennially flood-prone areas of Bihar sets an example.
Let's embrace innovation
Diversification is key to a resilient agrifood systems. But diversification is impossible without innovation. India's Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) has significantly transformed governance and service delivery by creating digital identities, secured payments and transactions. It is now scaling up through the 'Digital Agriculture Mission' that includes creating an exclusive DPI for agriculture with AgriStack -farmer-centric DPI and Krishi Decision Support System. A crucial feature of AgriStack is the introduction of a 'Farmer ID', like Aadhaar card, serving as a trusted digital identity for farmers. By leveraging data analytics, AI, and remote sensing, AgriStack can be a game changer in empowering the small and marginal farmers, addressing their loss and damage, and building resilient agrifood systems. DPI for agriculture can scale weather and parametric insurance and disaster-related benefit transfer schemes.
Way forward
The escalating impacts of climate change, particularly on vulnerable communities like those in Bihar, demand urgent attention and action. COP 29 in Baku presents a critical moment to ensure that the loss and damage funds are directed toward breaking the poverty trap and safeguarding the livelihoods of marginalized populations in disaster-prone regions in developing countries. This is a moral and practical imperative we can no longer afford to ignore.