Effects of Climate Change on the Health of Rural Farming Households in Oyun Local Government Area, of Kwara State Nigeria

Abstract

This study examined the impacts of climate change on the health of rural family households in Kwara State, Nigeria. A multistage sampling procedure was used to select 120 farmers for the study. The data collected through structured questionnaires and interview schedules was analyzed using mean, percentages, and Chi-Square. The findings revealed that the common effect of climate change on health is heat stress (M =4.1), malaria (M=3.76), depression (M=3.43), hunger (M=3.37), and death (M=2.88). Moreover, the coping strategies to ameliorate the effect of climate change were good medical care (16.7%), personal hygiene (25.0%), proper sanitation (13.3%), planting of trees to replace felled trees (16.7%), and prayer to God (6.7%). The major constraints to adaptation were lack of information and credit. Respondents’ age (x2= 10.50. ) and educational status (x2= 14.97) were positively significant factors determining the adaptation strategies' choice. The study, therefore, recommends that free health care facilities should be given to farmers while extension services should help in increasing the awareness campaign on the best method to cope with the effects of climate change.