Climate Risk Profile Siaya County Highlights
Kenya County Climate Risk Profile Series Climate Risk Profile Siaya County Highlights Siaya County is characterised by high poverty levels (47.56%) and food insecurity. Agriculture is the main source of livelihood in the County, contributing about 60% of the household income and providing almost 61% of all employment opportunities. Maize, beans, sorghum, and local poultry are the key value chain commodities in the County. Droughts and intense rainfall already constrain agricultural productivity and food security in Siaya County; climate projections indicate increasing events of drought and intense rains. Farmers in Siaya County employ a host of on-farm strategies to cope with climate risks and shocks including: planting of drought-resistant crop varieties, diversification, conservation agriculture, value addition strategies, animal feed conservation, and farmer groups to ease access to credit, farm inputs and market information. The main constraints include high costs of inputs, and limited access to credit and extension services. Low adoption of agricultural technologies, low use of inputs, high cost of credit, and poor quality soils are some of the salient factors that exacerbate the impact of climate change and variability. Off-farm services that assist farmers to mitigate climate change and variability include early warning information on drought risks and food security assessments. Farmers in flood- prone areas along river banks and basins receive early warning information on amounts of rainfall and water levels in catchment areas. The private sector, with the support of non-governmental organizations, is playing a key role in helping farmers adapt to climate change. For instance, the East African Breweries Limited (EABL) is promoting growth of sorghum, which is drought tolerant.
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