ANALYSIS OF ADAPTATION TO CLIMATE CHANGE AMONG RICE FARMERS IN WERSTERN ZONE OF BAUCHI STATE, NIGERIA

Abstract

The study analyzed the adaptations to climate change among rice farmers in the Western Zone of Bauchi State. Multi-stage sampling technique was used in selecting 140 respondents, data were collected using structured questionnaire and analyzed using both descriptive and inferential statistics. Result reveals that 41.4% of the respondents were within the age of 36-45 with a mean of 28 years. About (33.6%) of the respondents has the household size of 8-10 with a mean of 8 persons per household, and about (42.9%) of them had primary education. The result further reveals that most (82.9%) of the respondents were married and about (41.4 %) had a farming experience of 16-21 with a mean of 13 years. It also shows that about (47%) of rice farmers had quarterly extension visit. The result revealed that (67%) of rice farmers perceived increased in temperature as the effect of climate change in the study area, about (18.1%) of the respondents perceived high cost of inputs as the major constraints to adaptation strategies by the rice farmers. The regression result reveal that marital status, age of the farmers, educational level, farming experience, farm size, access to extension and extension visit had a positive coefficient and significant (P<0.01). The major constraints to the adoption of existing climate change adaptation strategies by rice farmer are high cost of inputs, insufficiency of financial resource, high cost of labour and inadequacy of climate information, The study concluded that socio-economic characteristic of farmers play a significant role in perceptions and adaptations to climate change among rice farmers in the study area. Marital status, age of the farmers, educational level, farming experience, farm size, access to extension and extension visit were the significant factors influencing perception and adaptations to climate change by rice farmers in the study area. Based on the finding, it is recommended that, Extension agents should sensitize and raise awareness to climate change, adequate media information should be provided by the various agricultural programmes (ADPs) so as to create conducive policy that will enhance adaptive capacity of the farmers to mention few.