Effect of Climate Variability on Sustainability of Food Items in Kwara State, Nigeria
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Date
2015
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Department of Sociology, Osun State University, Oshogbo
Abstract
Climate of Africa varies from humid to tropical climate to hyper-arid Saharan climate. The rainfall is highly variable in space. Different weather conditions allow the occurrence as well as the degree of crop productivity. This work examines the impact of weather variables on crop productivity in the city of Ilorin, Kwara State. The climate data were collected from Nigeria Meteorological Agency (NIMET) Ilorin Airport, while the agricultural yields were collected from Kwara Agricultural Development Programme (Kwara ADP). Climatic data on rainfall, temperature, relative humidity, wind speed and sunshine hours were collected for a period of 10years alongside agricultural data on maize, cassava, cowpea, tomato and groundnut. Linear regression, correlation analytical techniques and Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) were employed to analyze the data. The result of analysis of variance shows that a magnificent relationship exists between crop yield and the selected weather variables. Also, the regression outcome shows weather variables have control of nothing less than 80% on crop productivity in Ilorin. This study however recommends that proper and regular monitoring of prevailing weather condition would enable farmers to understand the farming techniques to adopt for maximum production of agricultural produce.
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Keywords
Agriculture, Climate, Sustainability, Variability