Impact of climate change on livestock production in Zimbabwe

Climate change in Zimbabwe is marked by rising temperatures and unpredictable rainfall, creating significant threats to livestock production including pasture shortages, disease spread, and drought. The livestock industry is currently unprepared for these challenges due to a lack of investment in infrastructure, technology, and research personnel, leading to an overall decrease in animal numbers, productivity, and profitability.

• Climate change in Zimbabwe is characterized by increasing mean maximum temperatures, decreasing annual rainfall, unpredictable weather, and longer mid-season droughts.
• The primary threats to livestock production include land shortages for pastures, competition for cereals with humans, drought, the spread of tick-borne and vector diseases, extreme temperatures, and veld fires.
• The livestock industry is unprepared for climate threats because of insufficient research funds, a lack of qualified extension and research staff, no investment in infrastructure, and poor access to new genetics and technology.

APA

Climate and Development Knowledge Network (2016). Impact of climate change on livestock production in Zimbabwe. https://cdkn.org/resource/research-note-impact-of-climate-change-on-livestock-production-in-zimbabwe

Chicago

Climate and Development Knowledge Network. Impact of climate change on livestock production in Zimbabwe. 2016. https://cdkn.org/resource/research-note-impact-of-climate-change-on-livestock-production-in-zimbabwe.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Climate and Development Knowledge Network |title=Impact of climate change on livestock production in Zimbabwe |date=1 December 2016 |url=https://cdkn.org/resource/research-note-impact-of-climate-change-on-livestock-production-in-zimbabwe |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{climateanddevelopmentknowledgenetwork2016impact, author = {{Climate and Development Knowledge Network}}, title = {{Impact of climate change on livestock production in Zimbabwe}}, institution = {Climate and Development Knowledge Network}, year = {2016}, month = dec, url = {https://cdkn.org/resource/research-note-impact-of-climate-change-on-livestock-production-in-zimbabwe}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }