A new project will investigate climate vulnerability across the coffee value chain in Uganda, from farming to processing and marketing.

Gant Daily reports that Uganda, whose economy largely depends on rain-fed crops grown by smallholders, such as coffee, tea and cotton, is vulnerable to climate change. Climate change is expected to increase the prevalence of pests and diseases and cause unpredictable weather such as more frequent droughts, intense flooding and higher temperatures. There may also be climate-related impacts on infrastructure that affect coffee higher up the value chain. Managing these risks is “key to development planning,” says the article.

While value chain development is crucial to the growth of agricultural commodities, little work has been done to understand the impact of climate risks along the levels of value chains. It is hoped this project can be expanded to other agricultural value chains, recognizing that climate change will have far-reaching effects across agricultural, administrative and economic sectors.

The new project is a cooperative effort by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD), Uganda’s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Cooperatives (MTIC) and Makerere University. The aim is to integrate climate change adaptation and associated risk management into sectoral and national strategies.

Read the full story: Aiming for climate change-resilient coffee in Uganda