Challenges of Climate Change and Food Crop Production in Danbatta Local Government Area of Kano State

Abstract

The study examined farmers’ challenges on climate change and food crop production in Danbatta Local Government Area of Kano State. The study used stratified random sampling technique. Two hundred and fifty (250) copies of the questionnaire were administered on the respondents, out of which only 220 copies were retrieved and used for the analysis. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. The study findings revealed that farming is the major economic activity or occupation of the respondents in the study area (45%). The farming system in the area include crop farming, mostly grain crops (production of crops alone and mixed farming) and shifting cultivation. The findings further revealed that the local farmers in the study area plant early maturing crop as the main adaptive practice for climate change impact (16.3%). The findings also revealed that lack of adequate information on climate change (19.5%) and lack of farm ownerships (19.5%) are the major challenges to crop production in the study area. Based on the findings, the study recommended that government should create a conducive policy that will enhance adaptive capacity of the farmers, given the high degree of uncertainty about how climate change may affect farmers, and rural people in dry land area, the policy intervention in the state should focus primarily on addressing the underlying causes of vulnerability of the people and the limited adaptive capacity of the farmers, including their high dependence on natural resources, persistent poverty, inadequate education and alternative employment opportunities.