We Can’t Stay Indoors”: Sheda Farmers Face Double Heat Threat of Crop Loss and Health Risks

By Oladosu Adebola Oluwaseun

SHEDA, GWAGWALADA — Unprecedented high temperatures and an unusually early end to the rainy season are devastating local farm yields and heightening health risks for rural residents in Sheda, Gwagwalada Area Council.

​Speaking in an interview on the impact of changing weather patterns, local farmer Solomon Amos of Sheda community of Kwali Area Council described how the heatwave which arrived nearly a month earlier than expected has altered traditional agricultural cycles and severely impacted crop productivity.

​”Normally, before October, we would not start feeling heat like this until November or December,” Amos explained. “This year, the rains stopped around October 15th, and before the middle of October, intense heat had set in. Combined with the harsh sun, it is scorching crops before they can fully mature.”

​According to local farmers, key staple crops across the area are suffering significant losses:
​Guinea Corn (Sorghum), Crop stalks that typically remain green and fresh due to late-season breezes are drying out prematurely before reaching full maturity.
​Cowpea (Beans),Yields have plummeted sharply. Plantings that previously produced up to a full bag of beans now struggle to yield a quarter of a bag due to heat stress and moisture loss.
​Sweet Potatoes, Tubers are failing to reach normal sizes. Harvests that once yielded large, full potatoes in small quantities now produce undersized tubers, forcing farmers to harvest vastly higher quantities just to fill a fraction of a bag.

​Beyond the fields, the extreme heat is creating a dual health crisis for rural households. High indoor temperatures make sleeping inside homes unmanageable, while sleeping outdoors exposes residents to severe mosquito bites, raising the risk of malaria and other vector-borne infections.

​While acknowledging that public and private interventions have helped cushion local water scarcity through borehole installations in Sheda, community farmers emphasize that water access alone is not enough to offset the broader systemic impacts of extreme climate events.

​”Even if you have food, without cool, fresh air and good health, you cannot enjoy life,” Amos noted, calling on government authorities to provide targeted climate support and relief measures for smallholder farming families navigating severe crop loss and environmental health pressures.