What are the most effective climate adaptation strategies for rural areas?

Also, water conservation methods such as rain water harvesting could also be crucial during droughts, ensuring a reliable source for drinking, sanitation, and agriculture. In my experience, capturing and storing rainwater reduces runoff, minimizing flood risks and soil erosion, which can devastate agricultural land.

In my experience, most rural homes lack sizeable water storage capacity. Tanks, earth dams would dramatically change the water situation, for domestic and irrigation use. But prohibitive prices and costs have prevented many rural homes from adopting these simple water harvesting and conservation techniques. Unfortunately, critical water ecosystem like Mt Kenya circuit is under threat. A surge in demand for construction materials and rural incomes, has resulted in youth chipping away rocks along water ways, destroying water aquifers that would preserve rainwater for use, for longer periods, after the rains. And with the increased temperatures due to climate change, water scarcity is getting worse in households. Public awareness is required.

In traditional African society, the agrarian societies had proper storage, with stored food timed to last to the next harvest. Families had traditional granaries meticulously managed by the matriarch. This has largely collapsed, suffocated by the market forces. The need for cash for needs like school fees makes families sell foods, and rely on the market for a part of the intervening period before the next harvest. Also an estimated 30 to 40 per cent of foods are lost through post -harvest losses. A conscious effort to reinvent the ‘African granary’ with modifications suited to the new realities of climate change would help in managing food security at household level and national food security. It's been done before. It can be done again.

Regarding energy access, promoting off-grid renewable energy solutions, such as solar home systems and mini-grids, alongside energy-efficient technologies, community participation, and supportive policies and financing mechanisms, is crucial for ensuring sustainable development and resilience in rural communities.

In my experience, the structured layers in society can be used for dissemination of information, education and training. Apart from new media, the small interactive groups in religious, social or economic spheres are vehicles that can be used for capacity building on adaptation and mitigation on effects of climate change. The emphasies here is on peer influence. Naturally, human beings are progressive, but adapt new ideas at different levels, there are early adaptors, late adaptors and laggards. Through these organised groups, message reinforcement on the need for conservation of water, energy, prudent farming methods can be realised. Often a reward, and penalty system is applied. Sale of carbon credit, increased yields are incentives