Effect of Temperature and Rainfall Variability on Selected Crop Yields in Wenchi Municipality of Ghana

Abstract

The paper examines how rainfall and temperature variability affect the yields of selected food crops in the Wenchi municipality of Ghana. The study employed the quantitative research method to achieve its objective. The datasets consisted of historical records of monthly observational data of temperature and rainfall collected over 22 years (2000-2021), and yearly records of cassava, yam, and maize yield data collected over 22 years (2000 to 2021). Trend analysis was conducted to examine the trend in the climate variables (temperature and rainfall) and the yield of the selected food crops (cassava, yam, and maize) over the study period. A marginal variation in annual rainfall and temperature was observed over the study period. The municipality experienced slightly decreasing trends in annual rainfall and increasing trends in annual temperatures. Significant variations and increasing trends in the yields of the respective food crops were observed. Using standard regression methods, the result shows that maximum and minimum temperatures are associated with increased yields for yam, maize and cassava, but annual rainfall is not significantly associated with the variations in the yields of the selected food crops. The study, therefore, suggests that further research be undertaken to investigate how other environmental and non-climatic factors influence crop production in the Wenchi municipality.