The smallholder farming systems in eastern and southern Africa (ESA) depend on natural rainfall for crop and livestock production. However, climate change effects increasingly influence overall productivity in ESA smallholder farms. Prolonged dry spells have become more frequent which leads to moisture scarcity and low crop yields. Many cropping systems that are common in ESA are designed to maximize efficiency and productivity under optimum conditions. Hence, it is important to investigate potential cropping systems that are resilient to the impacts of climate change and promote conservation of resources in smallholder farms. One possible practice is intercropping cereals with different legume types. This has been traditionally used by farmers and has several benefits including reduced risk of total crop failure, more soil cover to protect the soil surface from direct sun and raindrop impact, improved resource use efficiency, reduced pests, diseases and weeds infestation and increased crop yield. Although intercropping different crop species has several benefits if properly combined in space and time, the crop mixtures practiced by farmers are not fully understood by researchers/scientists. Crops respond differently to environmental stress, and they have potential to complement each other. This review aims at providing an overview on the potential and setbacks of intercropping in maintaining crop yields in changing climate in smallholder farmers in ESA set-up.

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