Resumen
- More than 1 million ha devoted to food production in Colombia were severely affected by La Niña event in 2010 and 2011. This demonstrated that small farm production systems located in marginal areas of Colombia are extremely vulnerable to climatic hazards and that they require climate smart information and technologies to reduce impacts on food production and livelihoods. A multi-disciplinary and multi-institutional team of researchers led by the Colombian Agricultural Research Institution, CORPOICA, joined efforts in 2013 to contribute to the economic recovery of areas affected by La Niña, by developing and assembling information on climate risks and adaptation responses at local and regional level in user friendly decision support system. The main purpose is to empower local extension services and small farmers with agroclimatic information and tools to plan adaptation responses for 54 production systems to future climate extreme events. The team analyzed 29 years of climate data series to identify spatial and temporal susceptibility of land to climate hazards (floods and droughts) associated to El Niño/Niña events in 12 departments of Colombia and identified 36 crop production niches with lower risks of water deficits/excess based on soil-plant-climate parameters. Simultaneously, the team compiled 900 documents on management options with potential to solve water excess/deficits and conducted 1400 rapid rural appraisals to characterize biophysical and socioeconomic constraints and to identify local perception to climate hazards and adaptation responses. Promising adaptation technologies for specific production systems are under field evaluation by local stakeholders in pilot sites. Knowledge and information generated in the project is being shared by more than 400 extension agents