Lack of rainfall recordkeeping leads to poor planning
Records serve as performance indicators
Saisai urged farmers to stay updated on weather forecasts during the rainy season to maximise the benefits of the rainfall.
As the rainy season continues in Namibia, many farmers are still not keeping track of the amount of rainfall they receive.
“This lack of recordkeeping leads to poor planning for the dry season, and when there is too little rainfall, many farmers experience crop failure and livestock mortality due to inadequate preparation,” Agribank’s technical advisor for crops and poultry, Hanks Saisai, said.
According to him, Namibia’s central, north-central, eastern, southern and north-eastern regions have received some rain, marking the beginning of the 2023/2024 rainy season.
Saisai said farmers often get carried away by the occurrence of rainfall as it is an essential resource that enables them to cultivate cereal grains.
Rainfall additionally replenishes vegetation utilised by livestock as well as underground water, making it available in boreholes and wells, he said.
Essential
Saisai noted that that keeping a record of the amount of rainfall one receives is essential for farming.
“It serves as a performance indicator and helps farmers prepare for the next season.”
For instance, if a farmer’s area received an annual average rainfall of 350mm during the past rainy season, they can use this data to identify rainfall patterns for that year, the intensity of the rainfall and its distribution in each month.
“This information can assist in planning for the upcoming rainy season and enable farmers to have mitigation strategies in case of low rainfall.”
Saisai said it is also important for farmers to stay updated on weather forecasts during the rainy season to maximise the benefits of the rainfall.
With the availability of technology, farmers can utilise weather forecasting applications to check the weather outlook for a specific week or month, he said.
“This will help them to determine when to expect rainfall and its intensity.”
An example of one of the applications is Microsoft Weather.
According to Saisai, it can be used be used to check weather forecasts for each month during the rainy season.
“It can inform farmers about the expected number of rainy and dry days in a month. This information is essential for crop producers that rely on rainfall to grow their crops. For livestock farmers, it can be helpful in determining whether regrowth will be satisfactory, or the new grass will be scorched by the heat.”
Mitigate the risks
It is important to track and record rainfall as a preparatory strategy for erratic rainfall due to climate change, Saisai stressed.
In the long run, rainfall records can help both farmers and disaster risk management agencies to mitigate the risks associated with above-normal and below-average rainfall.
He added that a farmer who keeps rainfall records has a better chance of making informed decisions regarding which crops to grow and how many livestock can be kept under the traditional extensive grazing production system.
“This lack of recordkeeping leads to poor planning for the dry season, and when there is too little rainfall, many farmers experience crop failure and livestock mortality due to inadequate preparation,” Agribank’s technical advisor for crops and poultry, Hanks Saisai, said.
According to him, Namibia’s central, north-central, eastern, southern and north-eastern regions have received some rain, marking the beginning of the 2023/2024 rainy season.
Saisai said farmers often get carried away by the occurrence of rainfall as it is an essential resource that enables them to cultivate cereal grains.
Rainfall additionally replenishes vegetation utilised by livestock as well as underground water, making it available in boreholes and wells, he said.
Essential
Saisai noted that that keeping a record of the amount of rainfall one receives is essential for farming.
“It serves as a performance indicator and helps farmers prepare for the next season.”
For instance, if a farmer’s area received an annual average rainfall of 350mm during the past rainy season, they can use this data to identify rainfall patterns for that year, the intensity of the rainfall and its distribution in each month.
“This information can assist in planning for the upcoming rainy season and enable farmers to have mitigation strategies in case of low rainfall.”
Saisai said it is also important for farmers to stay updated on weather forecasts during the rainy season to maximise the benefits of the rainfall.
With the availability of technology, farmers can utilise weather forecasting applications to check the weather outlook for a specific week or month, he said.
“This will help them to determine when to expect rainfall and its intensity.”
An example of one of the applications is Microsoft Weather.
According to Saisai, it can be used be used to check weather forecasts for each month during the rainy season.
“It can inform farmers about the expected number of rainy and dry days in a month. This information is essential for crop producers that rely on rainfall to grow their crops. For livestock farmers, it can be helpful in determining whether regrowth will be satisfactory, or the new grass will be scorched by the heat.”
Mitigate the risks
It is important to track and record rainfall as a preparatory strategy for erratic rainfall due to climate change, Saisai stressed.
In the long run, rainfall records can help both farmers and disaster risk management agencies to mitigate the risks associated with above-normal and below-average rainfall.
He added that a farmer who keeps rainfall records has a better chance of making informed decisions regarding which crops to grow and how many livestock can be kept under the traditional extensive grazing production system.
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