ANALYSIS OF FARMERS ADAPTATION STRATEGIES TO CLIMATE CHANGE

Climate change is one of the socio-economic problem facing many societies in the world, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC, 2007) in the fourth assessment report, climate change is a change in the state of the climate that can be identified (e.g. using statistical tests) by the changes in the mean of temperature, precipitation and wind pattern, and which persists for an extended period usually decades or longer. Therefore, climate change is a statistically significant deviation or shift from the average weather conditions of climatic elements. The change could be limited to a specific region or may occur across the globe. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC, 1992), defined climate change as a change of climate that is caused   directly or indirectly by human activities, which can lead to changes in the constituent of the atmosphere, coupled with the natural climate variability observed over longer period. According to forest et al, (1999), climate change is a long term change statistical distribution of weather patterns over periods of time that range from decades of millions of years. It may be a change in the average weather condition or change in the distribution of weather events (Barchelet et al 2001).

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC, 2.007) fourth assessment report also predicted that Africa is highly vulnerable to the various manifestations of climate change and had affirmed that reservations about climate change are inappropriate considering apparent evidences from scientific observations of increase in global average air and ocean temperatures. Ayoade, (1995); Olaniran, (2002) affirmed that the growing climatic variations and the resultant increase in temperature have plunged some localities into experiencing excessive weather conditions in the form of floods, droughts, famine and heat waves, ensuing devastating effects on human existence, agricultural productivity and food security, with many households affected by low economic status. 

Climate change and agriculture are interrelated processes, which both take place on global scale (Fraser, 2008). Global warming is projected to have significant impact on conditions affecting agriculture, including temperature, carbon dioxide, glacial run-off, precipitations and the interaction of these elements (Fraser 2008). These consolations determine the carrying capacity of the biosphere to produce enough goods for the human population and domesticated animals. The overall effect of climate change on agriculture will depend on the balance of these effects. Assessment of the effect of global climate changes on agriculture might help to properly anticipate and adapt farming system to maximized agriculture product. Despite technological advances, such as improved varieties, genetically modified organisms, and irrigation systems, weathers is still a key factor in agricultural productivity, as well as soil properties and natural communities (Fischer et al, 1994).

Climate change is caused by greenhouse gasses (GHGs) such as carbon (IV) oxide (CO2), methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O). These gasses allow solar radiation from the sun to pass through the atmosphere but do not allow the reflected heat from going back into space which leads to the rise of earth's temperature (UNFCCC, 2007). Industrialization has led to the release of greenhouse gases (GHGs) into the atmosphere, with subsequent changes in the earth’s temperature and weather systems. Mean global temperature is predicted to increase by between 1.4 -5.80c over the coming century (IPCC, 2001), which will cause changes in the distribution of rainfall, frequency and intensity of extreme weather events, and sea –level rise. Many human systems will also be affected by these changes, particularly agriculture, water resources, industry and human health. 

 The effect of climate change on settlement patterns, agricultural activities, livelihood and incomes. One category of the effect involves extreme events such as floods and storms, as they impact on urban infrastructure (e.g. roads and bridges) and cause direct loss of life, while the other category involves effect on agriculture or ecosystem on which rural community people depends on (Dasgupta, et al., 2014) The effects of climate change varies from one community to another depending on the location. The impact of climate on agricultural activities in Nigeria is highly uncertain and there are varying results of direct and indirect impact on agricultural production in many communities in Nigeria. 

Agriculture is the main source of support for the majority of the rural households and attached urban populations in developing countries. Hence, adapting the agricultural sector to the negative effects of climate variability may be necessary to ensure food security for the country and to protect the livelihood of rural households. Adaptation to climate change is an effective measure at the farm level, which can reduce climate vulnerability by making rural households and communities better able to prepare themselves and their farming to changes and variability in climate, avoiding projected damages and supporting them in dealing with adverse events (IPCC, 2001).

In Nigeria, agriculture is one of the major economic activities contributing about 70–75% of the nations GDP. More than 70% of the population of the country depends on agricultural sector for their livelihood. Despite its high contribution to the overall economy, this sector is challenged by many factors of which climate – related disasters like drought and flood are the major ones (Deressa, 2007). One of the major causes of food insecurity is the menace of agricultural production failure due to drought, high temperature and gale force wind, resulting in reduced harvest and farmers’ income (Jalloh et al. 2013).

Since climate change is real, the ultimate goal is to create an avenue to address the challenges it poses (Hazo, 2018). However, adaptation is the most important element set by Scientist and Institutions to ensure that various livelihood systems are resilient to realities of climate change. 

Adaptation is the ability of famers to adjust or cope with actual or expected climate changes. Adaptation seems to be the most efficient and friendly way for farmers to reduce the negative impacts of climate change (Fussel et al., 2006). This can be done by the farmers themselves taking adaptation actions in response to climate change or by governments implementing policies aimed at promoting appropriate and effective adaptation measures. Adaptation strategies were cried by farmers in many communities depends on the geographical location. In Nigeria particularly the northern part of the country adaptation strategies varies from one locality to another. This include: farming system, crop rotation, change in terms of farm operation (Fussel et al., 2006). Climate changes can reduce agricultural yields and raise the poverty levels for many poor farmers engaged in agricultural sectors. Climate changes have been considered as a risk on farming activities. 

Various climate change adaptation strategies may have direct or indirect as well as temporal and persisting benefits. For instance, trees in forest/woodland and agricultural lands have several ecosystem services including, among others, shade, improve micro-climate, reduce soil erosion and land slide, regulate water flow and improve soil health. These benefits of trees on various land uses have been reported from different parts of the world. The soil and water conservation practices can contribute to the climate change adaptation through maintaining or increasing agricultural productivity (IPCC, 2004).

Facing the threats of climate change today followed by its impacts on the environment is certainly a challenge difficult to tackle. Moreover, the present environmental situation has created a greater issue regarding human development, especially in developing countries, where the situation of poverty is already out of great complexity. 75 percent of these 800 million people live in rural areas, where agricultural practice is their main source of livelihood (Herath, and Hasanov, 2017). 

Practically, the consequences of climate change and its adaptation practices are site specific due to variations in agro-climatic, socio-economic and physical characteristics. The Karetha watershed of Omo-Gibe basin is characterized by undulating topographies with a range of agro-ecological zones and degrading landscapes. In this watershed, the perceived climate change and its adaptation efforts were not studied empirically. Thus, this study aimed to analyse perception of farmers on climate changes and their adaptation strategies in different agro-ecological areas (Juana, et al., 2013).

In the study area, there are limited studies related to analysis of farmer’s adaptive strategies to climate change. Many studies report impacts of climate change, some of them discuss about agricultural vulnerability and climate change as well as adaptation and barriers. Nevertheless, they did not discuss what adaptive strategies to climate change in Giwa. So, there was urgent need to carry out studies on analysis of farmer’s adaptive strategies to climate change and hence the reason for this research.

The farmers in the study area have developed some local strategies in an attempt to solve the problem of climate change. It is against this background that this research attempt to answer the following study questions.

The research therefore answered the following questions:

The aim of the study is to examine farmer’s adaptation strategies to climate change in the study area. The aim will be achieved through the following objectiveswhich are to:

The content scope of the study covered the farmers in Giwa Local Government Area to seek their perception on adaptive strategies on climate change. The temporal scope was limited to cover the period of 2019, starting from July to November. However, the spatial scope was limited to some selected wards where agriculture is practiced most. The wards include Galadimawa, Giwa, Kadage, Kidandan and Shika.

Climate has been posing a serious threat to life on earth around the globe due to rising temperature and rainfall, seasons shifting such as wet and dry season If adaptation actions in response to climate change or government implementing policies aimed at promoting appropriate and effective adaptation measures are not taken the climate change will permanently eat up the land and water we see depend upon for survival. It is very important to understand that climate change is a complex problem especially in the developing world.

The study is significance on the basis that it will contribute to the existing body of literature on the effect of climate change on agricultural production in many societies particularly in the northern Nigerian. In addition to this, the study will provide the future researchers and readers with valuable information and findings regarding to the effect of climate change and develop a means or strategies to address it negative effect on farm output.  

Furthermore, it will serve as a reference material for the upcoming researchers climate change to be built upon in order to make agricultural activates to be more attractive to farmers. 

Finally, the study of the analysis of climate change will be of immense benefits to farmers, students and civil society organization on how best to adopt strategies to overcome the problem of climate on agricultural activities.