Impact of prolonged rainy seasons on food crop production in Cameroon |
| |
Authors: | Genesis T Yengoh Augustin Tchuinte Frederick Ato Armah Justice O Odoi |
| |
Institution: | 1.Department of Earth & Ecosystem Sciences, Division of Physical Geography & Ecosystems Analysis,Lund University,Lund,Sweden;2.National Service of Statistics,Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development,Yaounde,Cameroon;3.Department of Environmental Science, School of Biological Sciences,University of Cape Coast,Cape Coast,Ghana;4.Nature Today,Accra,Ghana |
| |
Abstract: | This study set out to examine why agricultural production in differing agro-ecological zones of the same country responds
differently to a common environmental event (an extension of the rainy season). We find that the heavy reliance of farmers
in the drier agro-ecological zones on seasonal cycles make them more vulnerable to an extension of the rainy season than those
in regions where rainfall is less relied on. Effects in these vulnerable regions include significant damage to crops as well
as a shortage in local markets, which raises prices of basic food commodities. The difference between prices in low and high
food producing periods is low for crops that can easily be preserved during rains (such as cassava at 58% from an average
of 20% in previous years and yams at 82% from 65%). Crops that depend on sunshine for preservation experience greater differences
between low and high periods (maize at 92% from an average of 31% in previous years, sorghum at 180% from 53%, and beans at
68% from 42%). In zones with a history of unreliable dry seasons, farmers are more adapted to coping with an extension of
the rainy season and possess technology and skills which can be made available to others in vulnerable zones through inter-regional
knowledge transfer of knowledge and skills. This study further reinforces the understanding that isolated climate shocks could
be important in understanding and managing vulnerability. Also, vulnerability is quite variable even among communities in
the same country, in which people practice the same economic activity and are exposed to the same shock. |
| |
Keywords: | |
本文献已被 SpringerLink 等数据库收录! |
|