Climate Change and Pastoralism

Pastoralism plays a critical role in the economic prosperity of Africa’s dry lands. The security and survival of pastoral people depend largely on livestock and seasonal mobility according to environmental conditions to where forage for the herds is available. While the diversity currently experienced within the Karamoja pastoral livelihoods context as a result of climate change and other factors have had a distinct and profound impact on pastoralists’ resilience in harnessing natural resources, political and economic factors present a big challenge to pastoralists’ adaptation by narrowing the window for livelihood recovery. This is because most development policies in Karamoja region do not support the integration of pastoralism but skewed towards sedentary crop faming. The author concludes that the future of pastoralism in Karamoja is uncertain due to multiple and increasing challenges. However, the uncertainty of pastoralists’ livelihood system in Karamoja today presents both a challenge and opportunities for researchers and development policy makers in exploring alternative livelihood option for the dry land regions in the face of climate change.