Di first agricultural settlements dem survive because humans sabi adapt, dem dey change di way dem dey do things to match di wahala wey seasons, soil, and di environment bring.

As climate change dey scatter di normal way of life, e don force African communities to rethink how dem go take grow food and survive. Di same sense of adaptation don show face again.

For Maiduguri area for Nigeria, Hauwa Ibrahim, wey be 45-year-old mama of six pikin, tink say everything don finish when flood carry her farm two years ago. She no fit wait for help, so she join women cooperative wey teach her how to grow crops for sack – one method wey dey make soil still fertile even when water no dey plenty.

“Before, we dey plant like our ancestors, but now rain no dey sure like before. When flood come, e go just destroy everything,” Hauwa yarn TRT Afrika. “Now, we don start to dey grow vegetables for sack, dey rear goat, and dey save money as group. Na teamwork and new method dey help us survive.”

Hauwa story na di same with millions of women for Africa wey climate change dey affect pass, but dem still dey find new ways to protect dia family and community.

One working paper wey United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Samuel Hall publish for April talk about di struggle and small small success wey women dey get for Somalia, Kenya, and Nigeria. Di paper wey dem title “Leading the way: Women navigating climate change, mobility, and resilience in Africa” explain how di wahala wey women dey face for climate change matter dey connect with gender and power palava.

From di way rain pattern dey change to how grazing land dey disappear, na women dey first notice di environmental changes – and na dem dey first act.

For northeastern Kenya, Halima Adan, wey be pastoralist, remember how drought wey kill her family livestock change everything. “Di men dem waka go find grazing land, but we women stay with di children. We no get milk, no meat. So, we start small business, dey sell firewood and make beads. Now, we even get savings group to buy drought-resistant seeds,” she talk.

For Tanzania, Asha Ahmed wey dey grow beans and cereal talk say women for her community don start wetin dem dey call “urban gardening.” “We dey use old container grow vegetables. We no get land, but we dey manage. Before, men dey talk say farming na women work; now dem dey see say na women dey save family,” she yarn.

Dr Fatima Jibril, wey sabi climate adaptation well well, talk say di container gardening wey women dey do na one of di cheapest and best way to adapt to climate change. “Na innovation wey necessity bring, and e fit help millions,” she talk.

But even with all di sense wey dem get, women still dey face wahala. Cultural norms dey restrict dem movement, financial wahala no let dem get loan, and dem no dey include dem for decision-making.

“We sabi wetin go work for our community, but nobody dey ask us,” Grace Muthoni, wey be farmer for Kenya Rift Valley, talk. “When NGO dem come, na di men dem dey talk to, but na we dey plant, fetch water, and feed children. Dem dey ignore our knowledge.”

Di UNDP-Samuel Hall report show how women for Africa dey create local solutions wey dey work well, even with di small resources wey dem get. Di community-driven innovation dey work where traditional method no dey work.

For Somalia, women wey don waka comot from dia home like Fadumo Hassan dey use sack and container gardening. “We dey grow amaranth and sukuma wiki (kale) for old jerrycans,” Hassan talk from Mogadishu. “Dem no need plenty water and dem dey grow fast.”

For Kenya and Somalia, women group dey gather money to invest for drought-resistant crops and dey train for climate-smart agriculture, so dem fit get food even when rain no dey fall well.

Pastoralist communities don switch to small livestock like goat and poultry wey no need plenty water. “After drought kill our cow, we buy chicken,” Naisiae Losokwan, wey be Maasai woman, yarn. “Dem no need much water, and we dey get egg to sell.”

Prof James Kinyangi, wey sabi climate matter well, talk say di way women dey move from cattle to poultry na good example of how to adapt to climate change. “E dey help food security and e no dey use plenty water – na di kind change we need,” he talk.

For Nigeria, women cooperative don enter handicrafts and trade, while for Kenya, dem dey test solar-powered irrigation system to help farm during dry season.

Women dey mix traditional wisdom with modern technology for early warning system. Community network dey share weather alert through radio and phone, and dem still dey use di old way to predict weather.

“My grandma teach me how to read di sky,” Adong Florence, wey be Ugandan farmer, talk. “When some birds dey build nest early, we sabi say rain no go fall.” Now, NGO dey use dis kind knowledge join dia weather forecast to make am better.

As women dey succeed for dia adaptation, gender role dey change. Young women dey learn climate-smart agriculture, and men dey support women economic plans.

“My husband dey talk say na only men fit herd animals,” Rukia Abdi, wey be Kenyan small-scale farmer, yarn. “But e change him mind when I start vegetable garden wey feed us during drought.”

Even though di grassroots effort dey show resilience, women wey dey fight climate change dey talk say dem need better resources to expand dia solutions.

“We no need pity,” Rukia talk. “We need training, loan, and make dem carry us join for decision. Give us di tools; we go do di rest.”