Drought and farming: how SA women are using indigenous knowledge to cope

In a study of small-scale farmers in an impoverished area, Dr Jabulile Mzimela and Prof Inocent Moyo of the University of Zululand found that women in particular had employed traditional farming practices to adapt to drought. Now, the academics are calling for the integration of indigenous knowledge in farming programmes.

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"Africa’s small-scale farmers make up nearly 80% of all farms in the agriculture sector. In South Africa, there are about two million small-scale farmers, predominantly black and based in the eastern summer rainfall region of the country.

A small-scale farmer produces food for their family on land that is generally smaller than 5ha. Small-scale farmers sell their excess produce but have limited access to resources, technology and big markets.

Africa’s small-scale farming sector is hit hard when there’s a drought because these farmers rely on rainwater. South Africa has been affected by major drought episodes over the years. However, 2015 stands out as the driest period on record since 1904, with drought affecting 2,7 million households, including small-scale farmers.

As droughts induced by climate change increase, South Africa’s small-scale farmers need to adapt to the changed farming environment so that they can continue to produce food.

INDIGENOUS KNOWLEDGE

Our research investigated how smallscale farmers, particularly women, were using indigenous knowledge systems to adapt to drought.

Indigenous knowledge systems are collections of wisdom developed over many generations by people who live closely with nature. They include ways of organising and classifying the world, practical observations about the local environment, and methods for managing resources responsibly. The terms indigenous knowledge and indigenous knowledge systems are used interchangeably.

We studied small-scale farmers in the Umkhanyakude District Municipality of South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal. This is one of the most impoverished areas in the province, with an unemployment rate of 37,7%, which is 4,2 percentage points higher than the rest of the country.