Agricultural Sector of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Climate Change—Challenges and Opportunities

Half of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s (BH) population lives in rural areas. Agricultural production is a backbone of the rural economy and generates significant economic value for the country. BH is highly vulnerable to climate change, which poses a significant development challenge given the climate-sensitivity of the agricultural sector, the share of agriculture in the total economy, the number of people employed in the sector, and the closely related socio-economic issues of food security. BH has experienced serious incidences of extreme weather events over the past two decades, causing severe economic losses. Based on available data and currently available climate projections, exposure to threats from climate change will continue to increase. The review paper presents the current state of the BH agricultural sector and the impact of potential climate change on agricultural systems. It proposes policy options to optimize opportunities and mitigate consequences of possible climate change in the agricultural sector. Development of policy and research capacity should include harmonisation and centralisation of domestic agricultural policies, carrying out a vulnerability assessment and strengthening the public and private extension systems. Further technological development should include improvements in weather and climate information systems, crop development, irrigation and water management

Agricultural Sector of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Climate Change — Challenges and Opportunities

Half of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s (BH) population lives in rural areas. Agricultural production is a backbone of the rural economy and generates significant economic value for the country. BH is highly vulnerable to climate change, which poses a significant development challenge given the climate-sensitivity of the agricultural sector, the share of agriculture in the total economy, the number of people employed in the sector, and the closely related socio-economic issues of food security. BH has experienced serious incidences of extreme weather events over the past two decades, causing severe economic losses. Based on available data and currently available climate projections, exposure to threats from climate change will continue to increase. The review paper presents the current state of the BH agricultural sector and the impact of potential climate change on agricultural systems. It proposes policy options to optimize opportunities and mitigate consequences of possible climate change in the agricultural sector. Development of policy and research capacity should include harmonisation and centralisation of domestic agricultural policies, carrying out a vulnerability assessment and strengthening the public and private extension systems. Further technological development should include improvements in weather and climate information systems, crop development, irrigation and water management

Assessment of Climate Change Impact on Water Requirements of Orchards in Bosnia and Herzegovina

In agriculture, climate change will have the strongest impact on orcharding, due to the length of the growing season. High temperatures, droughts and more intense solar radiation could burn leaves and fruits, which would impair the quality and marketable yield. On the other hand, heavy rains, if they occur during the period of flowering and maturing, especially of cherries and berries (strawberries, blackberries, raspberries), would result in the spread of fungi, rotting of fruit and delayed picking. In this regard, the objective of the paper is to assess the extent to which climate change will affect the availability of water in traditional, rainfed orchards, as well as to promote adaptation initiatives. The CROPWAT 8.0 model was used to analyze water surplus and shortage. Input climate data pertained to a reference period and SRES climate scenarios A1B, A2 and RCP 8.5 applied to three characteristic climatic areas in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Analyses showed that water surplus would occur regularly in the colder part of the year, in each study area and by all scenarios. All study areas would also experience water shortages in summer, but with varying drought duration and severity. Adaptation measures are proposed for each study area and period of the year, such as the need for drainage in winter, irrigation in summer and application of new technologies for growing fruit trees