Systematic review of climate change impact research in Nigeria: implication for sustainable development

Abstract

There is evidence that Nigeria is already experiencing environmental challenges attributed to climate change (CC) and its impacts. This has clearly highlighted the need for knowledge-based strategies to help plan adequate mitigation and adaptation measures for the country. One of the basic requirements to ensure such strategies is the development of a database of national CC research. This will aid in the assessment of past and present scientific publications from which directions for future study can be mapped. The present study used standard, systematic, and bibliographic literature reviews to analyse the trend, focus, spatial variability, and effectiveness of published research on CC impacts in Nigeria. Four thematic areas of CC impact research were defined: Agriculture, Environment, Human and Multi-disciplinary study. A total of 701 articles were found to be relevant and the review shows that CC impacts and adaptations in the literature vary across research categories and locations. The period between 2011 (68 studies) and 2015 (80 studies) showed a tremendous rise in CC impact research with a peak in 2014 (84 studies). Studies in the agriculture category had the highest publications in 23 States of Nigeria. The review revealed three research gaps: (1) lack of research that investigated the magnitude of present and potential future impacts in the aquatic environment (2) little attention on CC impacts and adaptation in the Northern regions of Nigeria (3) absence of study investigating the effects of multiple variables of CC at the same time. The findings suggest that it would be useful to advance CC research in Nigeria beyond perceptive approaches to more quantitative ones. This is particularly important for highly vulnerable animals, crops, locations, and for better planning of adaptation strategies.

Climate change and primary health care in Sahelian Kano, Nigeria

“…This could include CC awareness and knowledge studies in practitioner and patient populations. 20 This will help the stakeholders with information necessary for the strategic planning of appropriate interventions.…”

Evaluation of climate change as a major determinant of crop yield improvement in Nigeria

“…al., 2019). Some of them include; uncoordinated and unsuitable agricultural policies; fragmented and overlapping institutions, low agricultural productivity, private sector underinvestment in agriculture, lack of appropriate mechanized technologies and inaccurate base line information on climate (Okon et. al., 2021).…”

Farmers’ Perception of Climate Variability and Adaptation Strategies in Akoko Southwest Local Government Area, Ondo State, Nigeria

“…The farmers also take a long time to change traditional farming methods, such as bush burning, deforestation, and rain-fed agriculture, and they lack the training, education, and knowledge required to adjust to climatic unpredictability, which is a developing issue (Anabaraonye et al, 2019). Destruction to farmlands, livelihoods, and biodiversity are some of the negative effects of climatic variability that have an irreparable impact on food production in poor nations like Nigeria that have a limited ability to deal with and adapt to these difficulties (Okon et al, 2021).…”