Strategies for Agricultural Adaptation to Climate Change in Kogi State, Nigeria

Abstract

The paper examined strategies for agricultural adaptation to climate change in eight selected rural settlements in Kogi State, Nigeria. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data on the strategies for agricultural adaptation of 99 farmers using a systematic sampling technique. The adaptation strategies were weighted for comparison among the selected settlements while the overall evaluation of the variations of the adaptation strategies among the selected settlements was investigated using chi-square (χ²). The prevalence of the adaptation strategies were classified using simple percentages. The results revealed that the strategies for agricultural adaptation to climate change are unequally prevalent, giving rise to high, moderate and low categories. Overall, the strategies for agricultural adaptation to climate change vary significantly among the selected settlements (χ² = 152.250, p < 0.05). It is concluded that the prevalence of the strategies for agricultural adaptation to climate change is mainly due to the uneven distribution of environmental and socio-economic resources. Therefore, efforts to boost the local farmers’ adaptation to climate change should of necessity identify prevailing adaptation strategies with a view to mainstreaming them into intervention programmes.

Keywords: climate; agriculture; farmers; adaptation; strategies