Assessing Climate Change Perceptions and Adaptation Strategies among Sesame Farmers in Yobe State, Nigeria

Abstract

The study was conducted on sesame farmers' perception of climate change on sesame production in Bade Local Government Area of Yobe State, Nigeria. A sample of 125 farmers was selected for the study. Data was collected on the socioeconomic characteristics of the farmers, their perception of climate change, sources of information, their adoption of adaptation strategies, and their constraints on sesame production. Descriptive statistics such as means, percentages and Likert scale were used to analyze the data. The results show that male farmers (80.0%) dominated sesame production. The mean age was 35.03 years, and most (64.0%) farmers were married. Most (56.8%) respondents had an unfavorable perception of climate change. The primary source of information on climate change was other farmers (86.4%). Most (52.8%) respondents had a low adoption of climate change adaptation strategies. The majority (53.6%) of the respondents faced high constraints to sesame production. It was recommended that agricultural extension services be revived to disseminate climate change information to sesame farmers so as to improve their control measures to climate change with the view to enhance sesame production.