Implications for Mitigation and Adaptation Measures: Rice Farmers’ Response and Constraints to Climate Change in Ivo Local Government Area of Ebonyi State

Abstract

The study assessed rice farmers’ response and constraints to climatic change in Ivo Local Government Area (LGA) of Ebonyi State with focus on mitigation and adaptation measures. The study employed multistage random sampling technique to select 120 rice farmers for the study. Primary data were collected with the aid of structured questionnaire and interview schedule. The data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The results showed that more than half (52.5%) of the respondents were within the age range of 31–40 years. Majority (64.2%) were males, while 70.8% of them were married with 48.3% of them having a household size range of 7–9 persons. Furthermore, majority (56.7%) of the rice farmers completed primary education, while 67.5% hold a farm size range between 1.3 and 3.0 ha in scattered plots. More so, most (49.2%) of the respondents earned an annual income of between N50,001 and 80,000, while majority (70%) do not belong to cooperative society. The manifestations of the effects of climate change as perceived by the farmers include variations in rainfall pattern (96.7%), relative humidity (74.2%), wind pattern (69.2%), temperature (73.3%), and solar radiation (85.8%). The perceived effects of climate change on rice production were stunted growth ($\overline{x}=3.0$), delayed tasseling ($\overline{x}=3.5$), disease and pest infestations ($\overline{x}=3.4$), prolonged drought ($\overline{x}=2.8$) flooding ($\overline{x}=2.8$), and poor yield ($\overline{x}=3.2$). The mitigation and adaptation measures employed by the rice farmers were application of organic manure ($\overline{x}=3.2$), construction of bunds for water conservation ($\overline{x}=3.4$), mixed cropping ($\overline{x}=3.3$), early planting ($\overline{x}=3.2$), tree planting ($\overline{x}=2.6$), planting of improved varieties (3.8), mulching ($\overline{x}=2.8$), use of agrochemicals ($\overline{x}=2.9$), and fertilizer application ($\overline{x}=$3.9). The study identified economic, extension, and institutional constraints as the major constraint to farmers’ mitigation and adaptation to climate change effects on rice production. The study recommended that government through the Ministry of Agriculture should provide infrastructures like irrigation facilities systems that will provide water for all seasons farming; meteorological stations should be provided in the rural areas to supply farmers with relevant information that will assist them in forecasting and improve farmers’ access to agricultural inputs at subsidized rate so as to enable rice farmers mitigate the adverse effects of climate change.