Analysis of Farmers' Vulnerability to Climate Change in Niger State, Nigeria

Abstract

Abstract. This research evaluates the farmers' vulnerability to climate change in Niger State. Strategies for reducing the effect of climate change have regularly been made without experimental foundations and adequate information on farmers' vulnerability to climate change in the study area. Thus, integrated farmers' vulnerability assessment approach was employed by classifying socioeconomic and biophysical indicators of vulnerability into adaptive capacity, sensitivity and exposure to determine the farmers' vulnerability to climate change. This is based on the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's definition of vulnerability. The study adopted a survey design and the method utilized for the study was questionnaire administered to 400 households in the study area. The results indicate that the farmers' vulnerability was low in zone A with a mean index of 2.86, very low in zone B with a mean index of 3.74, and high in zone C with a mean index of 1.95 (the higher the value of the index the lower the vulnerability of farmers). It is recommended that measures should be taken to integrate climate change adaptation into Niger State development process. These measures should include improvement in adoption of good agricultural practices (GAP).

Drought occurrences and its implications on the households in Yobe state, Nigeria

“…Irrigation projects which would have served to mitigate these problems were also affected by water shortages as most of the dams dried up during droughts, thus, exacerbates the impact of droughts on the environment and human comfort. Abaje et al (2013) state that during drought periods, the land is under increased stress from both human beings and livestock, through unsustainable agricultural practices, leading to increasing desertification (Oyekale 2009;Eze et al 2018). Mortimore et al (2009) have shown that overgrazing becomes destructive during drought, when large areas that would normally have been available for grazing dry up, animals are forced to feed on any available edible vegetation they could find.…”

“…Consequently, about 65% of the total respondents depends primarily on farming, thus increasing drought occurrences affects household revenue generation and food availability in the study area. Eze et al (2018) argue that households whose livelihood depends on farming suffer losses during drought because the crop yield and livestock production are reduced and also, the weight and strength of cattle for the purpose of draught power is drastically reduced. Moreover, the frequent incidences of droughts resulted to the lowering of water table and sustenance of few rivers.…”

“…To address the impact of drought on households, food systems have to become more efficient and resilient (Eze et al 2018). Moreover, climate-smart practices aim to improve food security, help communities adapt to drought and contribute to drought mitigation by adapting to appropriate practices, developing enabling policies and mobilizing needed finances.…”

“…During the years of abundant rainfall, households in the region experience bumper harvest from both crop and livestock productions. Conversely, during the years with rainfall deficit, the households experience crop failure, poor crop yield, leading to famine, hunger, and death, including livestock (Eze et al 2018). Khalil (1974) shows that about 300, 000 livestock died during the drought that occurred in the year 1972 to 1973.…”

Progress in Climate–Agricultural Vulnerability Assessment in Nigeria

“…Abaje et al [38] GS CVI Adeoti et al [39] GS CVI Adewuyi et al [40] TR, GS CVI Ajibola [18] All LnCLAH Atedhor [36] SdS U Awolala and Ajibefun [41] TR, GS CVI Awoyemi and Olajide [42] All CVI Ayanlade and Ojebisi [43] GS D, FS Aye and Ater [44] All CY Building Nigeria's Response to Climate Change (BNRCC) [6] ShS, GS, TR, MF V Cervigni et al [45] All CY, LTHI, LGPP Chikezie et al [46] TR CVI Chukwuemeka et al [47] TR CVI Eze et al [48] GS CVI Madu [37] All CVI Madu [49] All CVI Manu et al [50] GS, SdS CVI Medugu and Majid [51] U CVI Ojo et al [52] GS CY Umar et al [35] SdS, ShS The theoretical backgrounds typically provide a guide for the conceptual frameworks used to operationalize vulnerability assessments [12]. Table 3 further shows that studies applied different methods to construct a composite vulnerability index.…”