Risk management attracted attention during the 1990s as one of the activities that can make rural livelihoods more sustainable. Risk is high in the more marginal and uncertain environments inhabited by pastoralists, and its management is a necessary condition for the survival of households and groups. Herders were especially at risk in the former centrally-planned economies during the period of economic liberalisation. Here government had hitherto taken responsibility for most risk, protecting pastoral livelihoods through a range of economic and social measures, but suddenly ceased to do so as part of the economic reforms adopted from 1989 onwards. Herders in these countries found themselves bearing the whole economic and ecological cost of risk almost overnight. The aim of the present study is to discover more precisely how far the risk management agenda developed initially by the two FAO/TCP projects in Mongolia has been implemented, what specific institutional reforms it has encouraged, how the agenda itself has developed and changed, and what has determined its successes and failures. The objective is to document some of the institutional and policy dimensions of a pastoral risk management strategy, some of the results such a strategy can achieve, and ideas about its further development. ...

In the recent past, most Asian countries have greatly improved their capacities to monitor hazards and to warn, evaluate and provide emergency relief to victims of disasters. As a result, the number of lives lost to disasters such as floods, storms and extreme temperature has decreased significantly. However, the vulnerability within the agriculture sector has continuously increased due to its high level of exposure. It is essential to re-align all disaster management programmes in the agriculture sectors from response to prevention and preparedness. It means, in effect, to shift from the current focus on relief and mitigation activities to all-round early warning, prevention, preparedness, relief, rehabilitation and sustainable recovery activities. It is also required to integrate disaster prevention within the agricultural development processes. There are many examples of farmer-led participatory disaster risk management initiatives at pilot scale in Asia. However, efforts are required at much greater scale to mainstream these pilot scale efforts at the national and regional levels. Although disaster risk reduction is now widely adopted, it still remains a challenge to fully integrate it into agriculture sector development planning.

Natural disasters have severely destabilized the socio-economic fabric of the Caribbean region in the last two decades, with the most devastating impacts experienced in 2004. According to the Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters, at least 6,000 lives were lost, and over one million people were affected by natural disasters in the region in 2004. Comprehensive assessments of the impacts of natural disasters on five Caribbean countries revealed that the extraordinary active hurricane season during that year resulted in damages approximating US $5.7 billion. Moreover, the productive sectors which include agriculture accounted for over one third (35.2%) of associated damages and losses. Such events have exposed the socio-cultural and environmental vulnerabilities of the Caribbean basin, and the urgent need to rethink disaster management options. A comprehensive approach to disaster risk reduction however, has not been integrally incorporated into the agriculture sector within the region. This strategic deficient landscape has significantly reduced the resilience of the sector to cope with extreme hydro-meteorological hazards such as Hurricane Ivan. In recognition of the immense negative impact of the 2004 hurricane season on the farming community, and the urgent call for assistant from regional policy makers, the Food and Agricultural Organization funded ...

The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) provides that all Parties must formulate and implement national or regional programmes containing measures to facilitate adequate adaptation to climate change. It lists specific domains in particular need of adaptation, namely coastal zones, water resources, agriculture, and areas affected by drought and desertification, as well as floods. Included among this list are specific reference to: small island countries, countries with forest areas liable to forest decay, countries prone to natural disasters, and countries with fragile ecosystems, including mountain ecosystems. The croplands, pastures and forests that occupy 60 percent of the Earth’s surface are progressively being exposed to threats from increased climatic variability and, in the longer run, to climate change. Abnormal changes in air temperature and rainfall and resulting increases in frequency and intensity of drought and flood events have long-term implications for the viability of these ecosystems. As climatic patterns change, so also do the spatial distribution of agroecological zones, habitats, distribution patterns of plant diseases and pests, fish populations and ocean circulation patterns which can have significant impacts on agriculture and food production.

The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) provides that all Parties must formulate and implement national or regional programmes containing measures to facilitate adequate adaptation to climate change. It lists specific domains in particular need of adaptation, namely coastal zones, water resources, agriculture, and areas affected by drought and desertification, as well as floods. Included among this list are specific reference to: small island countries, countries with forest areas liable to forest decay, countries prone to natural disasters, and countries with fragile ecosystems, including mountain ecosystems. The croplands, pastures and forests that occupy 60 percent of the Earth’s surface are progressively being exposed to threats from increased climatic variability and, in the longer run, to climate change. Abnormal changes in air temperature and rainfall and resulting increases in frequency and intensity of drought and flood events have long-term implications for the viability of these ecosystems. As climatic patterns change, so also do the spatial distribution of agroecological zones, habitats, distribution patterns of plant diseases and pests, fish populations and ocean circulation patterns which can have significant impacts on agriculture and food production.