An NGO has urged national and county governments to come up with innovative ways to counter climate challenges in arid and semi-arid areas.

Generation for Change and Growth director Abdullahi Mohamud said one of the strategies that will go a long way in helping communities from the region include water harvesting.

“There is a lack of knowledge, capacity and preparedness by the community, for instance to harvest rainwater and respond to climate change,” he said.

Mohamud said the government must also make sure that such communities have early warning systems to help them make decisions.

The UN launched the Early Warnings for All Initiative in November 2022 at the COP27 meeting in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

The initiative calls for the whole world to be covered by an early warning system by the end of 2027.

Studies have also shown that shifting to new crop types/varieties and livestock breeds can help such communities.

Experts have pointed out the need to shift to short-season and drought-tolerant crops such as pigeon peas and cowpeas.

Mohamud said the government and all stakeholders must be innovative to help solve climate-related challenges facing communities in the North.

He said asal areas were under increasing pressure from changing weather patterns, including reduced, less predictable and less evenly distributed rainfall, more frequent extreme weather events such as droughts, floods and storms, and rising temperatures.

Arid and semi-arid lands in the country make up 89 per cent of the country, with approximately 38% of Kenya's population, and have been hit hard by the devastating impacts of climate change.

Mohamud said extreme weather events such as rising temperatures and growing water stress are putting lives on edge.

The director urged communities to take centre stage in efforts by the government to plant 15 billion trees to raise Kenya’s tree cover to 30 per cent by 2032.

The state has identified 70 per cent of the areas to be rehabilitated are in Asals.

After long seasons of dry spells, parts of Northern Kenya have been wrecked by floods.

Despite the downpour in some parts like Wajir, water shortage continues to be a challenge in most counties in the north.

Different stakeholders have come on board to advocate the implementation of more practical and innovative ways that will guarantee poor households a reliable supply of water and food.

Mohamud said the ongoing efforts to deal with climate change in the region are not people-centred but instead focus on entrepreneurship.

He said all strategies must directly involve communities whose activities have a direct impact on the environment.

This, he said, must entail proper use of technology.

One of the main causes of water scarcity in arid and semi-arid areas is rainfall variability that results in droughts and intra-seasonal dry spells, which in turn lead to unpredictable and depressed livestock and crop yields.

This comes at a time when Kenya is still battling one of the worst droughts and conditions in some of its counties in the north, while other parts of the country are experiencing heavy rains.