Abstract
Rainfall and evapotranspiration are two vital elements for food production under rainfed agriculture. This study aims at investigating the combined changes in these variables in the form of aridly index in the southern Senegal. The temporal trends in annual and monthly (from May to October) aridity index, rainfall and evapotranspiration are examined and adaptation strategies to the vulnerability of rainfed rice cultivation to the changes are developed. The results show a significant decreasing trend in annual rainfall at all study locations for the period 1922-2015. When analyzing the trends in sub-periods, there are two clear patterns in the annual rainfall series: a decreasing trend for the period 1922-1979 and a reversal increasing trend for the period 1980-2015. An increasing trend is also observed in annual reference evapotranspiration. The results reveal that the region will be drier with a significant increase in aridity at the annual and most monthly series. Appropriate adaptation strategies should be implemented to diminish the adverse influence of the increasing aridity on rice productivity for a sustainable agriculture.
Highlights
Rainfall and evapotranspiration are the most important components of the hydrological cycle and govern food production under rainfed agriculture
West African Sahel is becoming drier with inter-annual variability of total rainfall [3] under the influence of the north-south migration of the Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone [4]. [5] reported a significant decreasing trend in annual precipitation across the Senegal River Basin from 1950 to 2000 similar to the results obtained for a longer period of 1900-2002 [6]. [7] observed a decrease in total annual rainfall over Burkina Faso from 1950 to 2013
Datasets of daily rainfall were obtained from 4 meteorological stations in the Southern Senegal for the period of 1922-2015 and reference evapotranspiration were calculated for the same weather stations for the 1950-2000 period
Summary
Rainfall and evapotranspiration are the most important components of the hydrological cycle and govern food production under rainfed agriculture. [5] reported a significant decreasing trend in annual precipitation across the Senegal River Basin from 1950 to 2000 similar to the results obtained for a longer period of 1900-2002 [6]. Climatic variables and reference evapotranspiration showed a strong spatial and temporal variability in Senegal. [5] indicated significant temporal variation in climate across the Senegal River Basin for the 1950-2000 period. The analysis of ETo is recommended for food production sustainability regarding water deficit or flooding conditions, relative to the total rainfall. [17] indicated a decreasing trend in ETo due to a decrease in net total radiation and a significant decrease in wind speed over the Changjiang (Yangtze River) catchment in China for the period 1960-2000. In North America, a decreasing trend in ETo was reported by
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
