Article
Andes Resilientes: Protecting the future of family farming
The climate crisis risks disrupting our food production. In the Andean region of South America, this is even more important as it houses the production of many common groceries while being a highly vulnerable region to climate change. National counterparts from 3 Andean countries work to improve climate resilience and secure future food production in the region, under the framework of the Andes Resilientes project coordinated by Helvetas-Fundación Avina with SDC funds.
Latin America is often recognized worldwide for its vast diversity of fauna, flora, and climate, which makes it the “food basket” of the world. Peruvian avocados, Ecuadorian bananas, and Bolivian quinoa are increasingly common on the shelves of supermarkets in the Global North. However, this rich agrobiodiversity that feeds the world faces complex challenges due to climate change, directly impacting the agricultural, forestry, and livestock sectors, especially small-scale family farming.
Family farmers in Peru
According to the FAO, 80% of the world’s food depends on family farming, and in the Andean region, rural farming families are among the most vulnerable. The ecosystems they inhabit and rely on for their livelihoods are affected by climate-related risks such as rising temperatures, unpredictable rainfall patterns, and more frequent extreme weather events. These changes pose significant risks to food and water security, exacerbating existing socio-economic vulnerabilities.
These vulnerabilities are caused by a lack of coordination between key sectors to strengthen the climate resilience of Andean farming communities, such as the environmental, agricultural, and financial sectors, farmers, and the market. It is essential to establish public mechanisms and programs that facilitate the adaptation of Andean family farming to climate change, fostering closer ties with the private sector to create synergies that strengthen these initiatives.
To accomplish this, with the support of Swiss Cooperation, the regional project Resilient Andes to Climate Change was launched in 2020 in Bolivia, Ecuador, and Peru, aiming to strengthen the resilience of Andean populations by promoting joint actions against climate change. The first phase has now come to a close, focusing on implementing public policies that establish the relationship between family farming and climate challenges. Through sustained work with national entities—project counterparts from the ministries of agriculture, environment, and inclusion in the three Andean countries—the project sought to strengthen the capacities and services of these three sectors to create support systems for the most vulnerable communities to effectively adapt to climate change, thus ensuring long-term food and water security:
Example 1: Andean rural women participating, learning, and leading
Together with the communities of Morochata and Colomi in the Cochabamba province and Escoma in La Paz, Bolivia, local authorities and the Ministry of Rural Development and Lands promoted resilient technologies in pilot plots, benefiting 75 families in the three communities. These innovations included certified seeds, technical irrigation, and adopting agroecological practices, which have allowed for diverse vegetable production.
Implementing family gardens with high-economic-value crops has improved the resilience of families in terms of food and economy. These agroecological practices were developed alongside producer associations and government agencies, highlighting the role of women as key leaders in adapting to climate change.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xn_Zwt_vdbk
Example 2: Financial services adapted to family farming
Despite the growing awareness of climate change, microcredits for family farming still don’t adequately integrate climate risk variables like changing agricultural calendars and non-economic climate impacts. This is crucial to supporting climate change adaptation, as family farming receives at least 40% of the green credits requested yearly.
In collaboration with the Network of Development Financial Institutions and nine Savings and Credit Cooperatives in Ecuador, work was carried out between 2021 and 2022 to strengthen the financial services of these cooperatives in high Andean areas by implementing an environmental and social risk analysis system with a climate change focus. As a result, in 2023, the San José Savings and Credit Cooperative launched a pilot credit for sustainable agriculture.
The experiences gathered from the pilot have been highly valued by the communities and national and local actors, and they are expected to scale to other areas during the project’s second phase.
Example 3: Consolidating Inclusive Rural Enterprises (ERI) in the market
FONCODES, a national program within the Peruvian Minister of Social Inclusion, promotes Inclusive Rural Enterprises (ERIs) to generate income and supply local markets, but climate change is affecting their development. In collaboration with the Andes Resilientes project, a diagnosis of the ERIs in Cusco and Puno was conducted across six business lines (crafts, agriculture, agro-industry, livestock, forestry, and aquaculture) to identify best practices and innovations to mitigate the effects of climate change and manage disaster risks.
In Cusco and Puno, water access is insufficient, and droughts and frosts negatively impact ERI economic activities, particularly in the agricultural, agro-industrial, livestock, forestry, and aquaculture sectors. Despite these challenges, some ERIs have implemented innovative solutions such as building reservoirs and crop rotation to adapt to climate change, which contributes to meeting Peru’s climate goals and strengthening climate adaptation of family farming.
EncontrAR: The collaborative learning platform that enhances knowledge about Andean family farming in times of climate change
EncontrAR is a virtual knowledge management platform designed to connect the demand and supply of innovative solutions to address the challenges of Andean family farming in Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru. With more than 300 experiences and 40 best practices systematized in easily accessible files, the platform offers resources in three key areas: mountain water management with techniques for efficient and sustainable use; biodiversity management promoting the preservation of traditional crops and agrobiodiversity; and agro-pastoral systems management focusing on sustainable practices that reduce pressure on soil and natural resources.
Moreover, EncontrAR facilitates interaction among its users through a Multidisciplinary Community of Practice, launched in the first quarter of 2024. This community allows users to share lessons learned and collaborate on issues related to family farming in the Andean region.
In its second phase, the project will focus on further integrating stakeholders into mechanisms and solutions for adapting Andean family farming, emphasizing greater private sector involvement, and scaling up experiences with evidence of climate adaptation and knowledge management for regional exchange of lessons learned.
More information is available on its website (in Spanish):
Home | Andes Resilientes al Cambio Climático
Proyecto regional que colabora con actores públicos y privados para fortalecer sus servicios y capacidades que mejoren la resiliencia climática en los Andes.
https://www.andesresilientes.org
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This is crucial for strengthening climate resilience & securing the future of family farming, ensuring food security in a vulnerable region!
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It's very uplifting to hear news of projects like these that improve climate resilience while supporting vulnerable communities. Thank you for your work.