Changing rainfall patterns are threatening agricultural production in Libya’s Green Mountain region, one of the country’s key grain- and livestock-producing areas, AbdelHakim Elwaer, FAO Assistant Director-General and Regional Representative for the Near East and North Africa, told DNE Africa.

Elwaer said the region has been directly affected by climate change and declining rainfall, raising concerns over the sustainability of agricultural production.

Rainfall during October and November is particularly important because it coincides with the beginning of the agricultural season and plays a major role in determining production levels.

However, rainfall during October and November last year was severely limited, with significant precipitation arriving only in March.

By that time, the rainfall had a limited impact on agricultural production because it came too late in the crop cycle, Elwaer explained.

Harvesting generally concludes around June and July, meaning the availability of water at the beginning of the planting season is particularly important for crop development and yields.

Elwaer said the deterioration in rainfall patterns over the past five years requires a comprehensive assessment of Libya’s agricultural outlook, particularly in vulnerable production areas such as the Green Mountain region.

The changing rainfall patterns add to the challenges facing Libya’s agricultural sector, which is already constrained by water scarcity and the country’s predominantly arid climate.