The earliest agricultural settlements survived because humans learnt to adapt, adjusting their methods to the vagaries of seasons, soil and circumstance.
As climate change cleaves through established ways of life and forces African communities to rethink how they grow and survive, the same instinct for adaptation has kicked in.
In Nigeria’s Maiduguri region, Hauwa Ibrahim, a 45-year-old mother of six, thought all was lost when floods swallowed her farm two years ago.
She couldn’t afford to wait for aid, so she joined a women’s cooperative that taught her how to grow crops in sacks – a technique that keeps soil fertile even when water is scarce.
“We used to plant like our ancestors did, although the rains aren’t as predictable as before. When floods strike, which is frequent, they destroy everything,” Hauwa tells TRT Afrika.
“We have switched to growing vegetables in sacks, rearing goats, and saving money as a group. We survive because we work together and follow new methods.”
Her story mirrors that of millions of women across Africa who, despite being disproportionately affected by climate change, are pioneering innovative solutions to protect their families and communities.
A working paper published in April by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and social enterprise Samuel Hall documents these struggles – and small triumphs – through case studies from Somalia, Kenya and Nigeria.
The paper, titled “Leading the way: Women navigating climate change, mobility, and resilience in Africa”, speaks of “gender-climate-mobility nexus” as an overlooked aspect of the underlying power dynamics and specific vulnerabilities of women and girls caught in this cycle.
First off the blocks
From shifting rainfall patterns to vanishing grazing lands, ground reports show that women are often the first to notice environmental changes – and also the first to act.
In northeastern Kenya, Halima Adan, a pastoralist, recalls how a spell of drought wiping out her family’s livestock was the turning point.
“The men left to find grazing land while we stayed behind with the children. We had no milk, no meat. So, we started small businesses, selling firewood and making beads. Now, we even have a savings group to buy drought-resistant seeds,” she says.
Global plastic production has more than doubled since the start of the century to reach 460 million tonnes.
Asha Ahmed, who grows beans and cereal in Tanzania, describes how women in her community have turned to what they call “urban gardening”.
“We use old containers to grow vegetables. We don’t have land, but we make do. The men used to say farming is women’s work; now they see it as women saving families,” she says.
Dr Fatima Jibril, a climate adaptation specialist with the African Climate Policy Centre, sees this as more than a stopgap solution.
"What these women are doing with container gardening represents one of the most cost-effective and scalable climate adaptation solutions we have seen. It's innovation born out of necessity that could benefit millions,” she says.
The continent produces less than 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions but is the least able to cope with the negative impacts of climate change.
Societal restrictions
Despite their resourcefulness, these women face barriers. Cultural norms restrict their mobility, financial exclusion limits their access to loans, and decision-making spaces rarely include them.
“We know what works for our communities, but no one asks us,” Grace Muthoni, a farmer in Kenya’s Rift Valley, tells TRT Afrika. “When NGOs come, they mostly talk to the men, but we are the ones planting, fetching water and feeding children. Our knowledge is ignored.”
The UNDP-Samuel Hall report highlights how women across Africa are developing locally-led climate adaptations that deliver real impact, even with limited resources. These community-driven innovations are proving effective where traditional approaches fall short.
Faced with dwindling arable land, women have developed ingenious farming techniques. In Somalia, displaced women like Fadumo Hassan have taken to sack and container gardening.
"We grow amaranth and sukuma wiki (kale) in old jerrycans," Hassan says from Mogadishu. "They need little water and grow fast."
Kenya and Somalia have women's collectives pooling resources to invest in drought-resistant crops and climate-smart agricultural training, creating more reliable food sources despite increasingly erratic rainfall.
The increased frequency of climate change-induced disasters such as excessive rainfall and heatwaves has forced scientists to devise ways to make the best of the worst situations.
Traditional ingenuity
Pastoralist communities have shifted to small livestock like goats and poultry that require less water.
"After the drought killed our cows, we bought chickens," says Naisiae Losokwan, a Maasai woman whose community lives near the Kenya-Tanzania border. "They don't need much water, and we get enough eggs to sell."
Prof James Kinyangi, a senior climate advisor for the World Bank's Africa Climate Business Plan, calls the transition from cattle to poultry among pastoralist women “a textbook example of successful climate adaptation”.
“It maintains food security while reducing water dependence – exactly the transformation we need to support,” he says.
Kenyan capital Nairobi is hosting the inaugural Africa Climate Summit, which is aimed at finding solutions to the ravaging climate crisis.
Women's cooperatives in Nigeria have also expanded into handicrafts and trade, while groups in Kenya are piloting solar-powered irrigation systems to maintain farms during dry seasons.
Many of these women bridge traditional wisdom and modern technology in early warning systems. Community networks now share weather alerts through radio broadcasts and mobile phones while valuing indigenous forecasting methods.
"My grandmother taught me to read the sky," says Adong Florence, a Ugandan farmer. "When certain birds nest early, we know rains will fail."
These observations are now incorporated into NGO forecasting models, creating more accurate, localised predictions.
Shifting gender norms
As women's adaptations prove successful, long-standing gender roles are evolving. Young women receive training in climate-smart agriculture, while men increasingly support women's economic initiatives.
"My husband used to say only men herd animals," says Rukia Abdi, a Kenyan small-scale farmer. "But he changed his mind when I started a vegetable garden that fed us during drought."
While these grassroots efforts indicate resilience, women working to combat the effects of climate change emphasise the need for proper resources to scale their solutions.
"We don't need pity," declares Rukia. "We need training, loans, and a seat at the table. Give us the tools; we will do the rest."
