Technology significantly affects human ability to control and adapt to their natural environments and has affected society and its surroundings in several ways. While we cannot totally prevent the consequences of climate change, scientific knowledge and technical know-how can be applied to adapt to its impacts. Climate change impacts have the potential to transform the pattern of crop productivity, livestock and fishery systems, and reconfigure food distribution, markets and access in Nigeria. The primary objective of this paper is to examine the technology management options to address climate change and food security challenges in Nigeria.
Understanding climate change
A. Natural causes
Many studies have ascribed natural, human activities or both as causative factors of climate change. For instance, naturally the climate goes through different cycles of variable duration, alternating between cold and hot periods. The earth has gone through several phases of warming and cooling over the last 700,000 years, at an average frequency of 100,000 years per cycle (Denhez, 2007). The warm period undoubtedly affected the development of agriculture and animal husbandry. Nevertheless, the consensus among many scientists in the last few years ascribed the cause of major global warming to human interference with the climate system.
B. Human causes
It is how widely agreed that the main cause of the present climate change is the emission of green house gases mostly carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide in large quantities by human activities. These activities include agricultural production, industrialisation, burning of fuels and deforestation, wetland degradation, among others (Stern 2007). These gases react with the ozone layer which protects the earth from the sun radiation. Reports showed that agriculture contributes 10percent and deforestation accounts for almost 20percent of green house gas emissions to climate change. These green house gas emissions are sequestrated in oceans, forest and wetlands, soils NO3 which serve as carbon sinks (IPCC 2007).
C. Socio-economic consequences of climate change
African countries are generally perceived to be vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. This situation is due to their low capabilities to adapt to the impacts. In Nigeria, for example, agriculture is one of the major sectors of the economy likely to be impacted by climate change. A preliminary integrated assessment model which assumes minimum adaptation for Nigeria predicts that climate change could cause a loss in GDP of between 6percent and 30percent or N15million and N69 trillion, respectively by 2050. It is projected that between 2percent and 11percent of Nigeria’s GDP could be lost by 2020, if no adaptation strategy is implemented. The model predicts losses of 8-30percent for the northern for the northern part of Nigeria, 5-25percent for South East and South South, and 7-34percent for the South West (Ikpi, 2010). Furthermore, the Nation’s quest to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) could be hampered by climate change. Specifically, the attainment of Goals 1 & 7 (OECD, 2009), which have to do with hunger and poverty and environmental sustainability, respectively could be greatly affected.
Food security
Food security is attained when all people at all times have physical or economic access to sufficiently safe and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life (Tollens 2000). In addition, FAO identified it as a world without hunger where social safety nets ensure that those who lack resources still get enough to eat (FAO 2007). This implied that food security critically depends more on socio-economic conditions that on agro-climatic conditions, and on access to food rather than the production or physical availability of food.
Challenges to food security in Nigeria
Attaining food security in its entirely poses a huge challenge in a country like Nigeria as a result of a wide spectrum of problems. More than 90percent of agricultural production in Nigeria is rain-fed with about 79 million hectares of arable land, of which 32 million hectares are cultivated (nwajiuba, 2012). Both crop and livestock production remains below potentials. Despite a 7percent growth rate in agricultural production (2006) 2008), the growing population is dependent on imported staple food (e.g rice, beans) exemplified by increase in food import bill.
First and foremost, the primary cause of food insecurity in developing countries is the inability of people to gain access to food due to widespread poverty and unemployment which also inhibits purchasing power and prevents assured access to food supplies. Secondly, global food prices have risen dramatically in the last few years and are forecast to rise further or become more volatile (IAASTD, 2009: Nelson et al 2011). Food price volatility has exerted considerable pressure on global food security and many Nigerians depend on market for their food supply and vulnerable to high food prices. Related to high food prices is high costs of input which limit yield and production levels that many times lead to sub-optimal input utilization. For instance, fertilizer consumption in Nigeria is one of the lowest in sub-Sahara Africa at 7kg per hectare (Abu. 2012).
Thirdly, the inherent characteristics of climate that manifest themselves as changes of climate over a period time affect food security significantly in unpredictable ways as a result of their detrimental effect on pests, crops diseases, crop production, animal husbandry, and humans. Changing climatic conditions affect both the physical and the economic availability of certain preferred food items. Their impacts on income-earning opportunities can affect; the ability to buy food, the availability of certain food products and price. Changes in the demand for seasonal agricultural labour consequent upon changes in production practices will in turn affect income-generating capacity. Fourth, farmers in Nigeria also have limited access to credit, and less than 10 percent of irrigable land is being irrigated. Fifth, the global economy is knowledge driven and food system efficiency is dependent heavily and directly on agricultural technological innovations and innovations in relevant sectors. Nigeria’s adult literacy level is 54.5percent (NBS, 2009). However the rural poor who are the active stakeholders in food availability account for 33.4percent and are mainly involved in subsistence farming. Finally, the apparent inconsistency in government’s targeted policy intervention and implementation strategies further compounds the problem of food security.
Production stage, affecting the quantities and types of food produced. Likewise, food security activities like land clearing, crop production, animal husbandry, food processing and preservation and food distribution which lead to the production and release of green house gases (such as carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide) cause global warming and impact on climate change.
The ability of any nation to effectively address climate and food security for growth and development depends a great deal on the effectiveness of that nation’s system of innovation. This means that key actors and stakeholders in different Universities and public research institutes, Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) as well as the private sector must work together in synergy to come up with priority areas of R & D activities and proffer solutions through the conduct of interdisciplinary research in the areas of climate change and food security.
Willie Siyanbola
.Siyanbola, director-general/CEO,
National Centre For Technology Management (NACETEM),
edited by Ayo Oyoze Baje
