Choice of Adaptation Strategies for Climate Change: The Case of Oil Palm Farmers in Southern Nigeria

Abstract

There is an increasing concern that the performance of oil Palm production is currently, greatly threatened by climate change. Oil Palm is particularly sensitive to climate change because yields depend largely on prevailing climate conditions especially in Nigeria where traditional and rain-fed agriculture predominate. However, the extent to which these impacts are felt depends principally on the choice of adaptation measures used by farmers to cushion the effects of climate change. In the oil palm industry in Nigeria, little empirical evidence exists to substantiate the context that guides the farmer’s choices of one strategy or package of strategies to employ in their effort to reduce climate change related challenges. This study adopted the multinomial logit model to analyze factors affecting the choice of adaptation strategies in response to climate extreme events. The Multinomial logit regression model was used to capture choice probabilities across the various options of climate change adaptation strategies. Results from the multinomial logit model showed that different socioeconomic factors affect adaptation to climate extreme events. Also, farm size, household size and income influenced adaptation positively while frequency of extension contact influenced adaptation negatively. The findings underscore the need for farmers' education, poverty alleviation and increased access to technologies and more efficient inputs as potent tools for climate change adaptation in the area.