What COP31 Can Learn from Ethiopia’s Farmers and Pastoralists

Delegates are preparing to gather at the United Nations’ annual climate conference, COP31, to negotiate the future of climate action, but some of the most important adaptation innovations are already happening far from the spotlight. In the fields, rangelands and markets of Ethiopia, farmers and pastoralists are not waiting for climate solutions to arrive; they are building their own. 

In Ethiopia, erratic rainfall, recurrent droughts, degraded rangelands, water scarcity, changing disease patterns and increasing climate uncertainty are already affecting the livelihoods of millions of people who depend on agriculture and livestock. For smallholder farmers and pastoralists, climate impacts determine whether crops germinate, animals find pasture, water points remain accessible, and ultimately whether families can sustain their livelihoods.

These same communities are among the world's most important innovators in adaptation. Drawing on generations of experience, local knowledge and increasingly on scientific climate information, they develop practical solutions that help them anticipate, absorb and respond to climate shocks.

These locally rooted innovations deserve far bigger attention. They offer valuable lessons for farmers and agro-pastoralists elsewhere, as well as for international climate policy discussions on adaptation finance, resilience, and loss and damage — all highly relevant for the upcoming COP31.

Agriculture remains the backbone of Ethiopia's economy, and millions of households depend on rain-fed farming and livestock production. Recurrent droughts have become more frequent and severe in recent years and jeopardise local resilience. Drought affects pasture availability, livestock health, water access and market functioning simultaneously. For smallholder farmers, increasingly unpredictable rainy seasons make traditional planting calendars less reliable, which creates uncertainty around cropping decisions and increases risks of crop failure.

The power of combining local knowledge and science

Across Ethiopia, Helvetas works with farmers, pastoralists, local institutions and government partners to strengthen climate resilience. One lesson consistently stands out: Adaptation works best when solutions are designed with communities rather than for them. Many of the most promising innovations build on existing knowledge and practices while connecting them with climate science, markets and public institutions.

In the Wag Himra zone, the Agro-Climate Resilience through Climate Services (ARCS) project supports translating climate information into practical decision-making tools for planning planting, crop selection, soil management, irrigation and risk reduction. Farmers, extension agents, meteorologists and researchers jointly develop these advisories to ensure they respond to real needs and local conditions.

A farmer who knows that the rainy season is likely to begin later than usual can adjust planting schedules. Communities can select more drought-tolerant crop varieties and local institutions can prepare for expected climate risks before they occur. This knowledge comes in handy every planting season. But if the kiremt, the main rainy season, is as much delayed and scattered as we anticipate during this El Niño year, then risk-informed decisions could tip the scale for farmers and pastoralists alike.

This is equally important in pastoral areas such as Borana in Southern Ethiopia. In Borana, pastoralists have been using indigenous knowledge to interpret environmental signals and manage livestock mobility. Through Participatory Scenario Planning nurtured under the Regional Livestock Program (RLP), local knowledge is combined with scientific climate forecasts to support better drought preparedness and decision-making.

Healthy landscapes as adaptation infrastructure

Discussions about climate adaptation often focus on technology and infrastructure. Yet for farmers and pastoralists, healthy ecosystems provide some of the most effective adaptation assets available.

In pastoral areas, community-led rangeland restoration helps improve pasture availability and strengthens resilience during prolonged dry periods. Strategic grazing reserves, indigenous pasture reseeding and improved rangeland governance help maintain the natural resource base on which pastoral livelihoods depend.

Similarly, watershed management, soil conservation and water harvesting measures help improve agricultural productivity while reducing climate risks. In the Wag Himra zone, climate information services are complemented with climate-smart agriculture practices such as soil moisture conservation, participatory variety selection, watershed protection measures and solar-powered irrigation. Ecosystem conservation and restoration should be viewed as adaptation in practice, a buffer against extremes, and a strong foundation for resilience. 

A focus on strengthening markets, not just survival

Adaptation does not meet its full potential if it merely helps people survive the next drought. Strengthening adaptive capacity must create new perspectives and help people maintain and strengthen their livelihoods over time.

For pastoralists, climate resilience depends heavily on access to functioning livestock markets, feed systems, veterinary services and cross-border trade opportunities.

The experience of the RLP in Borana highlights the importance of viewing adaptation through a systems lens. For example, improved fodder production conservation can help livestock survive drought periods while creating business opportunities for women and youth. Better market connections can enable households to sell animals before drought conditions worsen and prices fall. And mobile veterinary services help reduce losses from climate-sensitive diseases.

Why are these innovations not reaching scale?

Despite their promise, many locally led adaptation solutions remain underfunded and difficult to scale. One challenge is that climate finance, especially from risk-averse multilateral funds, often sidelines the most affected communities, meaning the investments don’t reach farmers in Wag Himra and pastoralists in Borana. Increasing funding cuts of bilateral agencies have also contributed to widening the gap — a gap that local governments and civil society cannot fill alone. Access to funding would allow them to expand successful adaptation approaches and build resilience.

Then there is fragmentation. Climate adaptation is often implemented through individual projects rather than by strengthening the systems that communities already rely on. Meteorological agencies, agricultural extension services, local governments, market actors and research institutions frequently operate separately, despite pursuing related goals.

Pastoral systems face additional barriers. Mobility-based adaptation strategies are rarely reflected adequately in policy frameworks and investment priorities.  

Also, global climate policy discussions tend to highlight what is lacking instead of recognizing and systematically building on successful local and well-tailored solutions.

Why this matters for COP31

The themes emerging from Ethiopia's farming and pastoral communities connect directly to several COP31 discussions.

They reinforce the growing recognition that adaptation finance must increase significantly and become more accessible to local actors. Locally led adaptation can provide viable solutions, but requires predictable, long-term investment rather than short-term (humanitarian) funding.

Insights from Ethiopia also highlight the importance of strengthening resilience before climate impacts translate into loss and damage. Climate services, ecosystem management, stronger markets and early action can reduce future losses while protecting livelihoods. While loss and damage finance remains essential, greater investment in adaptation today can help reduce future humanitarian and economic costs.

Overall, these experiences underscore the need for accelerated global efforts to halt global warming and limit overshoot, as well as the recognition that adaptation is fundamentally a systems challenge.

A call for global action

At COP31, Helvetas is advocating for a stronger global commitment to financing and implementing locally led adaptation, to commitments towards funding loss and damage, and ultimately climate justice. Simultaneously, in connection with global and Swiss civil society networks, Helvetas will continue to call for governments to contribute their fair share to climate finance and to implement ambitious roadmaps to limit the overshoot.

As negotiators debate adaptation and loss and damage at COP31, they should remember that some of the most valuable solutions are already visible in Ethiopia's farms, rangelands and markets.

About the authors

Betseit Sisay is the Country Director at Helvetas Ethiopia.

Ephrem Taye is the Communication and Advocacy Expert at Helvetas Ethiopia.

Jana Junghardt is the Senior Advisor for Disaster Risk Management at Helvetas Switzerland.