Health impacts of climate change on smallholder farmers

Abstract

The health of smallholder farmers is crucial for ensuring food and nutritional security for two billion people. However, their health is in jeopardy for several reasons including challenges from climate change impacts. Using a narrative literature review supported by field observations and informal interviews with key informants in India, Bangladesh and Malawi, this paper identifies and discusses the health impacts of climate change under four categories: (i) communicable diseases, (ii) non-communicable diseases, (iii) mental health, and (iv) occupational health, safety and other health issues. The health impacts of climate change on smallholder farmers will hamper the realization of many of the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals, and a series of recommendations are made to regional and country governments to address the increasing health impacts of accelerating climate change among smallholder farmers.

Keywords: Climate change; Health impacts; SDGs; Smallholder farmers.

Fig. 1

PRISMA flow diagram of narrative literature review.

Fig. 2

(A) Global distribution of farm field size (smallholder farmers, adapted and modified from [18]); (B) Global distribution of annual mean temperature by latitude (adapted and modified from [19] with permission); (C) Climate change-induced extreme weather events related to meteorological, hydrological, and climatological phenomena in 2014 (adapted and modified from [20] with permission); (D) Geographical distribution of emerging infectious diseases reported by WHO from 1996 to 2009 (adapted and modified from [21] with permission). Note: All the maps from (A) to (D) have been reconstructed by using ArcGIS. (B), (C), and (D) represent data from 2009 to 2014. Due to lack of availability of more recent data, these maps are considered baseline maps.

Fig. 2

(A) Global distribution of farm field size (smallholder farmers, adapted and modified from [18]); (B) Global distribution of annual mean temperature by latitude (adapted and modified from [19] with permission); (C) Climate change-induced extreme weather events related to meteorological, hydrological, and climatological phenomena in 2014 (adapted and modified from [20] with permission); (D) Geographical distribution of emerging infectious diseases reported by WHO from 1996 to 2009 (adapted and modified from [21] with permission). Note: All the maps from (A) to (D) have been reconstructed by using ArcGIS. (B), (C), and (D) represent data from 2009 to 2014. Due to lack of availability of more recent data, these maps are considered baseline maps.

Fig. 2

(A) Global distribution of farm field size (smallholder farmers, adapted and modified from [18]); (B) Global distribution of annual mean temperature by latitude (adapted and modified from [19] with permission); (C) Climate change-induced extreme weather events related to meteorological, hydrological, and climatological phenomena in 2014 (adapted and modified from [20] with permission); (D) Geographical distribution of emerging infectious diseases reported by WHO from 1996 to 2009 (adapted and modified from [21] with permission). Note: All the maps from (A) to (D) have been reconstructed by using ArcGIS. (B), (C), and (D) represent data from 2009 to 2014. Due to lack of availability of more recent data, these maps are considered baseline maps.

Fig. 2

(A) Global distribution of farm field size (smallholder farmers, adapted and modified from [18]); (B) Global distribution of annual mean temperature by latitude (adapted and modified from [19] with permission); (C) Climate change-induced extreme weather events related to meteorological, hydrological, and climatological phenomena in 2014 (adapted and modified from [20] with permission); (D) Geographical distribution of emerging infectious diseases reported by WHO from 1996 to 2009 (adapted and modified from [21] with permission). Note: All the maps from (A) to (D) have been reconstructed by using ArcGIS. (B), (C), and (D) represent data from 2009 to 2014. Due to lack of availability of more recent data, these maps are considered baseline maps.

Fig. 3

The world has already experienced a 1 °C temperature increase. By implementing the Paris Agreement, temperature will still increase, but may be kept to 1.5 °C. Without full implementation of the Paris Agreement, global temperature may increase an average of 3 °C by 2100 (adapted and modified from [22] with permission).

Fig. 4

Without controlling increasing temperature, the health impacts of [A] communicable diseases, [B] non-communicable diseases, [C] mental health, and [D] occupational health, safety, and other health issues of climate change on smallholder farmers will all worsen with time.

Fig. 5

Impacts of smallholder farmers' health on SDGs. Black arrow (→) indicates overall negative impacts on all 17 SDGs, and green arrow () indicates reverse impacts, which means climate action [SDG:15] will reduce the health impacts of climate change on smallholder farmers. Red arrow () indicates smallholder farmers' health impact of climate change will have serious negative impacts on achiving SDGs: 1, 2 & 3. Note: In the diagram SGD 1: No Poverty, SGD 2: Zero Hunger, SGD 3: Good Health and Well-being, SGD 4: Quality Education, SGD 5: Gender Equality, SGD 6: Clean Water and Sanitation, SGD 7: Affordable and Clean Energy, SGD 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth, SGD 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure, SGD 10: Reducing Inequality, SGD 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities, SGD 12: Responsible Consumption and Production, SGD 13: Climate Action, SGD 14: Life Below Water, SGD 15: Life On Land, SGD 16: Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions, SGD 17: Partnerships for the Goals. (For interpretation of the references to colour in this figure legend, the reader is referred to the web version of this article.)