Climate Change and the Niger Delta Region

Abstract

The Niger Delta is located in the Atlantic coast of southern Nigeria where River Niger divides into numerous tributaries. It is the second largest delta in the world with a coastline spanning about 450 kilometres. It is the richest wetland in the world, highly diverse and supportive of numerous species of terrestrial and aquatic flora and fauna and human life. The Niger Delta is faced with myriads of environmental problems caused by climate change and the activities of multinational oil companies operating in the region. The occurrence of coastal erosion, rise in sea level, renewable resource degradation had been reported. Climate change has affected rainfall pattern with the consequent effect on vegetation and thus agriculture. Sea-level rise and repeated ocean surges will not only worsen the problems of coastal erosion that are already a menace in the Niger Delta, the associated inundation is increasing problems of floods, intrusion of seawater into fresh water sources and ecosystems destruction thus destabilizing the mangrove, and affecting agriculture, fisheries and general livelihoods. Coastal erosion is the most important impact of sea level rise in the region and should be given high priority attention. With the distruption/destruction of the coastal ecosystem, loss of habitat and the climate getting warmer, the fish population is affected. Coastal erosion and flooding moulder the fertilizing eggs and fry of fishes thus affecting recruitment into the population. Several roads have been made impassable. Settlements in the coastal region, especially in Forcados, with some oil wells, have been uprooted by coastal erosion. It is predicted that Nigeria will lose about $9 billion as a result of the sea level rise while at least 80% of the people of the Niger Delta will be displaced due to the low level of the region. A participatory, integrated approach to development is the solution. Government-private-sector partnership as well as partnership with other actors should be an integral part of the integrated approach.

Nigerian Law Students’ Perception of Online Teaching: Appraisal of COVID-19-imposed Online Classes

“…25 Since the introduction of this teaching method into the Nigerian Law School and some faculties of law, cutting across the public and private universities, legal education has been rejuvenated from a passive field of study to an active educational process that is student focused. 26 However, it is important to note that both the traditional method of learning by rote and clinical legal education teaching method are both physical learning methods in Nigeria and cannot prepare students, who are future lawyers, for legal practice in an information and communications technology (ICT)oriented world, which has become imperative by the emergence of COVID-19 social distancing and lockdown. Clinical legal education in Nigeria is not yet adopted as a teaching method in all law faculties.…”

Political Economy of Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Human Security Threat: An Evidence from Niger Delta Region, Nigeria

“…Heavy rainfall emanating from climate change contributes to the degree of flooding in the region. According to the International Federation of Red Cross (IFRC), "sea-level rise and flooding are already affecting millions of people worldwide… an estimated 10 million people are at constant risk of coastal flood" [49]. Flooding is an experience common during the rainy season.…”

Perspectives of Climate Change-induced Agricultural Losses and Food Shortage in the Swamp Forests of the Niger Delta Region, Nigeria

“…Among others, climate change has induced year-round food shortage in most households in coastal environments (Zacarias, 2019). The Niger Delta region suffers widespread climate threats which vary from storm surges, rising risks of flooding, erratic and extreme rainfall, heat waves, disruption of the mangrove and adverse impacts on livelihoods (Ogbona et al, 2017;Adewumi et al, 2018;Authority, 2020) coupled with low adaptive capacity (Ighedosa, 2019). The harmful effects of climate change on agriculture are critical due to the linkage between agriculture and food security (Belloumi, 2014;Ayo et al, 2014;Arora, 2019;Chen et al, 2021).…”