ABSTRACT
Absence of a farmer learning programme on climate change mitigation and adaptation in Cross River states is responsible for farmers’ low or non-usage of climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies with its attendant grievous impact on agricultural resources and production; farmers’ health, comfort and survival. To this end, this study was designed to develop a farmer learning programme for climate change mitigation and adaptation in Cross River State. Seven research questions were answered while five related null hypotheses were formulated and tested at 0.05 level of significance. The Research and Development design was adopted for the study. A multi-stage sampling technique was used to randomly select 36 lead farmers representing 36 registered farmer groups out of a total of 367 registered farmer groups for participation in the first phase of the study. A total of 209 respondents comprising of 120 Agricultural extension agents,
60 Agricultural Education lectures and 29 Agricultural extension lecturers participated in the
second phase of the study. A focus group discussion guide was used for data collection in phase one of the study while a structured questionnaire containing 115 items was used to generate data in phase two of the study. Both instruments were face validated by five experts while the reliability coefficient of the questionnaire was 0.97 using the Cronbach Alpha reliability method. Data generated through FGD were analyzed qualitatively while the Statistical Package for Social Science software was employed for the analysis of quantitative data. Mean and standard deviation were used to analyse data to answer research question while analysis of variance and Z-test were used to test the null hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. The findings revealed that famers have been experiencing effects of climate change to the extent that they were willing to learn how to abate it. Also emerging from the study are eight objective statements, 20 content to enhance mitigation, 10 content to encourage adaptation, 30 methods of delivering farmer learning programme on climate change mitigation and adaptation, 19 incentives to encourage participation and 27 strategies to evaluate the said programme. The test of hypotheses showed no significant difference in the mean responses of all the groups of respondents in the variable used. Based on the findings of the study, it was recommended among other things that; farmers should be involved in planning agricultural extension programme objective; methods and strategies of delivering and evaluating the programme respectively should principally be determine by programme objectives and other prevailing situations; government and NGOs should make budgetary provision for incentives to encourage participation, procurement of instructional resources and regular retraining of extension personnel. Importantly, the above findings were used to develop a draft farmer learning programme in phase three and the said draft was validated in phase four by a seven member panel of experts purposively constituted. Finally, validates inputs were used in phase five to revise the draft farmer learning programme for climate change mitigation and adaptation in Cross River State.
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background of the Study
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The survival and comfort of man on earth depends to a large extent on what he extracts from his environment. Environment is clearly a reservoir of resources for agricultural production. Unfortunately, the global climate system which is an integral component of the environment (earth’s life supporting infrastructure) has come under stress and currently becoming a topical issue worldwide because of the climatic extremes experienced in various parts of the world in recent years. Ghotge (2008) saw climate change (climatic extremes) as one of the most serious long term challenges facing farmers around the globe today.
Climate change according to Ayoade (2004) is a long term shift, alteration or change in the type of climate prevailing over specific location, region or the entire planet. According to United Nations framework convention on climate change (UNFCCC) as reported in Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC, 2001), climate change is a change of climate which is attributable directly or indirectly to human activity that alters the composition of the global atmosphere and which is in addition to natural climate variability observed over a comparable time period. It is obvious from both definitions that change is an inherent attribute of climate, which is caused by both human (anthropogenic) activities and natural factors and that human activities enormously and sometimes wantonly carried out on the environment make the pace of climate change much faster than climate variability, and with grievous impact on the environment, agricultural resources and production, human health and other sectors of the economy across the globe.
In recent times, global climate has been exhibiting a wide range of variability and change characterized by increasing temperature as well as increasing or decreasing rainfall
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2 conditions in different parts of the globe. These unfolding extreme weather conditions are already having various kinds of impacts on the environment such that in some areas, the environment is becoming increasingly dryer while in other areas, it is becoming wetter. Admittedly, all these have pronounced impacts on agricultural production throughout the globe. Evidently, Shah and Ameta (2008) stated that agriculture in the world’s dry lands is being seriously threatened by rising temperatures, changes in rainfall patterns or increased drought as a result of climate change. This is directly linked to reduced soil productivity and to a higher incidence of pests and diseases. Similar worrisome expressions of climate change are reported in Ghana (Agyei, 2008), Malawi (Bayani, 2008), Uganda (Lumala, 2008), Nepal (Gurung and Bhandari, 2008), Kenya (Awuor, 2008), Indonesia (Winarto, Stigter, Anantasari & Hidayah,
2008) and all regions of Africa (Maofomo, Chikowo, Mtambanengwe, Adjewsiah, Baijukya, Maria, Mvula, and Giller, 2008).
Expectedly, Nigeria is not an exception to climate change occurrence as Tobrise (2008) maintained that flood hazards in Nigerian cities have more than doubled in the last ten years. Despite the huge capital outlay of about two per cent of annual capital expenditure for the control of flood and erosion, the problem is compounded with urban expansion into the fringes without adequate provision of drainage facilities and is still escalating. Odemerho in Tobrise (2008) stated that the situation is sharper in Benin City, the capital of Edo state, where over 80 percent of the yearly allocation for flood control for the entire state is spent in Benin City alone and yet the menace persists. Olanrewaju (2003) lamented that the climatic situation in Kwara State was no longer supporting the growth of melon and that there was a confirmed change in the climate of Kwara State toward aridity in 2003. Variation in precipitation in Kwara State manifest in high frequency of late onset, early cessation and reduction in length of growing season (LGS). Eze (2008) reported that between year 2003 and 2007, a total of twenty lives and
3 fifteen houses were claimed by street flooding in Calabar Metropolis. Also, a study conducted by Utang, Akintoye and Wucox (2008) revealed that the intra annual flow regime in Aya Basin (a tributary catchments of the Cross River Basin) is highly variable and unreliable. That this is significantly a function of the interaction of climatic factors and that variable peaks have implications for flood recession agriculture which the people are adept at.
Cross River State is one of the coastal areas of the tropical rain forest regions in Nigeria which is most threatened because of high rainfall and rises in sea level that global warming may cause. The state is endowed with abundant natural resources, vast forest and arable land that is suitable for the production of many food and cash crops as well as the rearing of both indigenous and exotic breeds of animals. The climatic and weather condition of Obudu cattle ranch also favours the production of temperate varieties of crops and breeds of animals. However, with a lot of big rivers and vast area of land that meets the sea; natural arch, cave, stack, sand island, rocky islet, tombolo, spit, skerry, headland, cliff, dunes, estuaries, lagoons, beach are common characteristics of the state. Since these characteristics are highly influenced by climate, wind, sea and type of rock underneath, the state is highly predisposed to effects or impacts of climate change.
Effects of climate change are generally felt by all and sundry (human race, plants, animals and the environment) but farmers are said to have the worst of it because their crops; animals; agricultural resources (land/soil, streams/river, forest e.t.c); production practices and processes such as tillage, planting, harvesting, processing, storage and others; and above all themselves are all affected by the negative impacts of climate change. Also since it is noted that agriculture accounts for at least one quarter of all the world’s greenhouse gas emissions (Editor, LEISA magazine, 2008), there is need for farmers to learn how to reduce these emissions by reducing the use of chemical fertilizers, minimizing the use of fossil fuels, incorporating
4 nitrogen into the soil, avoiding the loss of organic matter, improving the use of manure; help sequester carbon by restoring the natural vegetation where it’s possible, avoiding deforestation, and to efficiently manage their soils. This justifies why farmers are chosen for a learning programme to be developed for in this study.
A famer is an individual whose primary job involves livestock rearing and or the cultivation of crops. In most cases, a farmer is a person who earns a living by farming. In this study, a farmer refers to a person who owns, works or operate an agricultural enterprise (production of crops and animals) either commercially or to sustain himself or his family. According to Ministry of Agriculture in Malawi (2010), a lead farmer is defined as an individual farmer who has been elected by the community to perform technology specific farmer-to-farmer extension and is trained in the technology. A lead farmer in this study refers to a member of a registered famer group who is democratically elected by other members of the same famer group in the presence of an extension agent to coordinate the activities of the group as well as becoming a link between extension personnel and the group. In social parlance, a lead farmer performs the function of a chairman and secretary of his registered famer group.
Farmers in the study area could be classified using various socio-economic and educational parameters. They are of various ages; while some have attained various levels of formal education, others are not formally educated; have various degrees of access to agricultural extension services, credit facilities, agricultural and other relevant information, social capital, and agricultural input resources; have various family sizes, asserts and constraints of socio-cultural and religious taboos; and are of both gender.
Gender refers to the range of ‘socially constructed’ roles, behaviours, attributes, aptitudes and relative power associated with being female or male in a given society at a particular point in time (Esplen,2009:). ‘Socially constructed’ means that these are not ‘givens’
5 or ‘natural’ but are constructed or produced by society and as such can be modified or changed. According to Brody, Demetriades, and Esplen, (2008), it is vital to understand ways in which climate change can create new and exacerbate existing gender inequalities. In many developing countries women’s livelihoods are particularly dependent on climate-sensitive sectors, such as subsistence agriculture or water collection. However, gender inequalities in the distribution of assets and opportunities mean that women’s choices are severely constrained in the face of climate change. For example, restrictions around land ownership for rural women mean they may not have access to productive land to farm, and lack of financial capital means they cannot easily diversify their livelihoods. The unpaid care roles that women and girls are so often expected to take on mean also that their lives are indirectly affected by the changes brought about by climate change. In a study titled ‘Genderization of farming activities in Obanliku, Cross River State’, Ushone and Ayang (2015) identified weeding, harvesting of arable crops, processing of harvested crops, conveyance of planting materials to farm among others as farming activities that are exclusively reserved for women and children. The researchers also identified the cultivation of legumes, vegetables, cocoyam among others as crops that are exclusively handled by women. It is not certain if these socio-economic attributes of farmers in the study area will influence their climate change mitigation and adaptation decision should a farmer learning programme on climate change mitigation and adaptation be implemented in the study area. This is because Deressa, Hassan, and Yesuf (2014) stated that various socio- economic, educational and institutional factors influence farmers’ choice of adaptation methods to climate change in the Nile Basin of Ethiopia. This position is shared by Yila and Resurreccion (2013), Hassan and Nhemachena (2014) and Piya, Maharijan and Josh (2014) in their separate researches in Northeastern Nigeria, on African farmers and in the rural mid–Hills of Nepal respectively.
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Specifically, the degree of global warming, flood, drought (dry spell) erosion, variation in rainfall, desertification, sea level rise, wind and rain-storm are some of the manifestations or consequences of climate change that are experienced in Cross River State (Eze, 2008, Utang, Akintoye & Wucox, 2008). Additionally, the preliminary investigation (need analysis) conducted to generate data for this research showed that farmers agreed that the climate is changing and that effects of such change are on the increase whereas they have not been taught by Agricultural extension agents how to abate the said climate change or how to adjust their farming practices and systems so as to cushion its effects. They mentioned effects of climate change experienced in the study area to include; poor harvest of crops leading to hunger, malnutrition and poverty; high crop and animal disease infestation; delayed planting period or change in cropping calendar; drying of streams/swamps; rotting of yam tubers due to extended rains in December; inability of local varieties of cassava to sprout because of too much rains; burning of cocoa leaves as if hot water is poured on them; cocoyam leaves becoming brownish in colour whereas it is not ripe for harvest; premature dropping of fruits in tree crops and increase in growth of weeds leading to increase in the frequency and cost of weeding.
In line with the above observations, Akoteyon and Ogundele (2008) reported that climate change can increase the risk of vector borne diseases in a number of ways while Barau (2008) held that the recurrent occurrences of droughts and floods have always left rural and urban dwellers victimized with one form of vulnerability and suffering or the other. A recent publication of the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NIMET, 2008) showed that in 2007, series of climatic change problem affected many sectors of the economy like transportation, aviation and agricultural production. Also climate change has resulted in flooding and more prevalence of some health problems like cracked lips, dry skins, bronchial problems and outbreak of some infantile diseases like meningitis.
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The frequent re-occurrence of devastating climate change extremes and the magnitude of effects or impacts of the said extremes on the populace in general and farmers in particular suggest an urgent need for an agricultural extension service to encourage climate change mitigation and adaptation. This is because the speed in which climate is changing and the resulting situations… only adds to the list of challenges and to the sense of urgency. Such extension services can only be made available if there is an agricultural extension programme on climate change mitigation and adaptation.
Agricultural extension programme is synonymous with farmer learning programme given that learning is generally defined as the production of change in human behavior and that Agricultural extension worker is continuously striving to bring about the said changes in behaviour of farmers and their families. Learning refers to the process or act of acquiring a modification in a behavioral tendency as a result of acquired knowledge and skills. The modification in behavior could equally be acquired through practice, training or experience. Jasani (2009) defined learning as a process by which an individual through his own activity, attain a change in his behaviour. It is an active process on the part of the learner while the essential role of an extension worker is to create effective learning situation. An effective learning situation requires the following essential elements; an instructor (an extension worker); learners (farmers); subject matter (recommended improved practices etc); teaching materials such as chalkboard, charts, models, slides etc; and physical facilities such as sitting accommodation, good visibility etc.
An Agricultural extension programme according to Ajayi (2011) is a written, long range and annual working plan with specific objectives for the agricultural development of an area… assisted and guided very closely by trained and experienced extension workers. It could be seen as a direction of movement of all pre-determined actions or products to be reached through
8 educational means. Thus, the components of the proposed programme includes: programme rationale, programme philosophy, objective statement, content, methods of delivery, incentives for encouraging participation and strategies for evaluation of the programme. A good farmer learning programme (Agricultural extension programme) on climate change will inter allia reduce vulnerability by identifying locally affordable risk reduction measures and at the same time develop adaptive capacities. It will also help in improving resilience through building of synergies among farmers for effective climate change mitigation and adaptation.
Climate change mitigation is defined as human intervention aimed at reducing the sources or enhancing the sinks of greenhouse gases (IPCC, 2007). Mitigation strategies are measures taken to deal with causes of climate change. These are actions taken by man to prevent or retard the concentration of greenhouse gases (which are responsible for causing climate change) in the atmosphere (Umar, 2008)
Climate change adaptation on the other hand is defined as adjustment in natural or human systems in response to actual or expected climate stimuli or their effects which moderates harm or exploits beneficial opportunities (IPCC, 1995). It requires the use of good agricultural, forestry and fisheries practices to meet changing and more difficult environmental conditions and the introduction of improved risk management measures.
Unfortunately, Barau (2008) reported that majority of institutions that are supposed to tackle the challenges posed by climate change in Kano State do not have reliable programmes put in place to manage the expected incidences and impacts of the climate change. Little wonder the result of preliminary investigation showed that Cross River State Agricultural Development Project (CRADP) has no extension or even awareness programme on climate change. Worst still is the fact that climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies are not even integrated into ‘Fadama’, ‘Sasacawa’, National programme on food security (NPFS), ‘USAID’, ‘MEDA,’
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RTEP’, ‘Project Awake’ and other agricultural programmes that are currently being implemented in the State by CRADP. This justifies the need to develop a learning programme on climate change mitigation and adaptation in the study area.
Programme development is a deliberate process through which representatives of the public are involved in the designing, implementation and evaluation of educational programmes that address needs they identify. Developing a programme in agricultural extension involves intensive planning, preparation of work and teaching plan, carrying out the plans, as well as determining and reporting accomplishments (Ogbonna, 2012)
Programme development in this study is seen as a process of making decision about the direction and intensity of extension education efforts of extension service to bring about social, economic and technological changes. The first step in any systematic attempt to promote rural development is to prepare useful programmes based on people’s needs. Thus, this study was anchored on needs assessment theory which emphasizes the importance of investing in assessment of needs to make sure that there is wise investment in the intervention programme that needs analysis may recommend. The theory also advocates the use of multiple techniques of needs assessment to get the true picture of what is required. Accordingly, review of relevant literature and the use of focus group discussion were considered appropriate for this study. Also, the Borich needs assessment model which requires participants to judge their own performance since the model emphasizes self-evaluation procedure guided this study. Accordingly, the descriptive approach to needs assessment where the person whose needs is to be assessed tells what he needs was adopted for this study using focus group discussion. The identified gaps were used to plan the needed intervention programme for climate change mitigation and adaptation in Cross River State using research and development (R&D) model.
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Research and Development steps or phases recommended by Gall, Gall and Borg (2007) are: identifying the instructional goal or goals; conducting instructional analysis; analyzing learners and contexts; writing performance objectives; developing assessment instruments; developing and selecting instructional strategy; developing and selecting instructional material; designing and conducting formative evaluation of instruction; revising instruction, and designing and conducting summative evaluation. Importantly, the authors advised that the 10 steps must not all be used in a study, but could be modified to suit the conditions peculiar to the study. Thus, the 10 steps of R and D model by Gall etal (2007) were modified by the researcher to a five-phase /steps which fits into this study. The five modified phases are:
Phase 1: Determination of learning needs of farmers in understanding the causes and effects of climate change.
Phase 2: Determination of components of farmer learning programme for climate change mitigation and adaptation in Cross River State.
Phase 3: Development of a draft farmer learning programme for climate change mitigation and adaptation in Cross River State based on findings, from phase 2.
Phase 4: Validation of the draft farmer learning programme for climate change mitigation and adaptation in Cross River State.
Phase 5: Revision of the draft farmer learning programme for climate change mitigation and adaptation in Cross River State based on feedback from phase 4.
The development of such programme that harmonizes with the local needs as the people see them and with the national interests with which the country as a whole is concerned, is an important responsibility of extension personnel at all levels (national, state, district, block and village). This will enable the extension worker who is seen as a teacher to handle problems of
11 immediate importance in farming or rural living. Programme development is not the end product of extension activities but it is an educational tool for helping people to identify their own problems and make timely and judicious decisions. Since it is seen as an educational tool, every extension worker is seen as a teacher while farmers are referred to as adult learners. It is not certain if the pronounced differences in duties and specialties of agricultural educators, agricultural extension lecturers and agricultural extension workers may have significant influence on their understanding of different components of learning programme (Agricultural extension programme) on climate change
In Nigeria, most agricultural extension/farmer learning programmes are product of top- down approach to programming (as they are developed centrally by the federal government and implemented uniformly in all states) which are yet to achieve their well-articulated objectives. A top-down extension planning approach otherwise known as centralized extension planning approach is a popular way of developing a programme whereby technologies are developed by research institutions and then transmitted to extension agents through subject matter specialists for onward transmission to farmers. In the same vein, extension officers at the zonal level plan programme, define specific objectives and messages to be disseminated to farmers. The involvement of farmers (who are at the centre of, and the rationale for any agricultural extension establishment) is not generally considered and given priority in top-down extension programing. Cristovao, Koehhen and Portela (1997) stated that strong criticisms against the top-down approach to programme planning are that it is too uniform; not taking into due account the socio-cultural environment, the particular circumstances in which project implementation occur, and the characteristics of the different clientele groups; and without taking into consideration the specific local needs of the farmers. In line with the above observation, farmers in Indonesia generally found official rain forecasts and predictions of very little use because they were not
12 sufficiently down scaled (Winarto, Stigter, Anantasari & Hidayah, 2008). In support of the above, Mckay (2008) reported that only when farmers can understand the negative effects of climate change and its impacts that they will prepare for and adapt to them. The author concluded that effective communication approaches are critical to help farmers adapt to climate change in Canada. In Nigeria, Yaro, Umar and Mashi (2008) argued that the practices of designing and implementing intervention programmes without involving local people can only succeed with coercion. Such enforced technologies may appear technically appropriate, but are commonly rejected by the local people when the external pressure is removed. Also projects and programmes must find ways of building on the skills, enthusiasm and knowledge of farmers as one continue to look for solution to development and technology problems.
On the other hand, the bottom-up extension planning approach is said to be open and process centered. Under such an approach, programmers act as partners and facilitators rather than experts and the participation of local actors (farmers) is stressed. It also allows more time on needs identification and project preparation with the active involvement of the intended beneficiaries. As a process, Cristovao, Koechnen and Portela (1997) described it as a dynamic effort of identifying farmers’ problems and the taking of decisions and actions to address them. They equally saw it as a social practice that has a negotiation process and a working platform involving different stakeholders. From the foregoing, one can conclude that bottom-up extension programming is a democratic exercise, implying an open discussion or dialogue around issues like rural farmers’ productivity, standard of living and the overall rural development.
In support of bottom up extension programming, Ajayi (2011) noted that if farmers or their representatives and other stakeholders are involved in the process of determining the objectives, they are much more likely to give their support. Also extension worker cannot hope
13 to convince leaders and farmers of the soundness of his programme objectives unless he examines jointly with them such objectives as well as facts, problems and possible alternative solutions. This is because ruralites to whom development efforts are directed, have their own body of knowledge that enables them arrive at decisions which could help their lot. Thus, embracing a bottom-up approach of programming is a sine quanon for effective participation and involvement of rural farmers whose level of education, experience, exposure and input resources have placed them in a disadvantage position as it relates to climate change mitigation and adaptation. It is based on this background that the researcher has embarked on this study entitled ‘Development of Farmer Learning Programme for Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation in Cross River State.
Statement of the Problem
Evidence abound to show that climate change is a reality and that it has caused a lot of problems in the entire globe in the agricultural, socio-economic and scientific sectors. Africa and indeed Nigeria is most vulnerable to climate change essentially because a greater percentage of her population depends on agriculture as the major /only source of their livelihood.
Perhaps, absence of farmer learning programme on climate change mitigation and adaptation in Cross River State as reported by Cross River State Agricultural development project (CRADP) is responsible for farmers’ low level or lack of awareness of climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies. This status of farmers’ awareness is equally responsible for their low or non-usage of the said strategies which has attendant grievous impact on agricultural production and great consequences on farmers’ health and their standard of living.
Ideally, CRADP is supposed to have a farmer learning programme on climate change or integrate climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies into various agricultural
14 development/extension programme that are being implemented in the study area in other to build farmers’ adaptive capacities through raising their awareness, knowledge and skills in controlling climate change. Aptly put, majority of institutions that are supposed to tackle the challenges posed by climate change in Nigeria do not have reliable programmes put in place to manage the expected incidences and impacts of climate change. Whereas experimental field schools are established in most countries such as Indonesia (Winarto, Stigter, Anantasari & Hidayah, 2008) with the aim to increase farmers’ knowledge on climate and improve their response to it, none of such exist in Nigeria. Consequently, there is no learning or awareness programme on climate change and as such, farmers still carry out activities such as deforestation, application of chemical fertilizers, bush burning, other poor farming practices which destroy soil and water resources, burning of fossil fuel among others indiscriminately. Also they are yet to adjust their farming practices and systems in line with realities of the time. Thus , effects of climate change such as flood; drought; increased temperature; change in time, volume and pattern of rainfall; increased infection of vector borne diseases; decline in agricultural production among others are generally felt by farmers.
The result of need analysis conducted for this study equally confirmed that poor harvest leading to hunger, destruction of crops, high crop and animal disease infestation, change in cropping calendar, drying of streams, pre-mature dropping of fruit in tree crops are among effects of climate change experienced in the study area. Thus, the absence of learning or awareness programme on climate change that is responsible for farmer’s low or non-usage of climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies with its attendant grievous impact on agricultural resources and production; farmers’ health, comfort and survival has created a knowledge gap which this study aims to fill.
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Purpose of the Study
The general purpose of the study was to develop farmer learning programme for climate change mitigation and adaptation in Cross River State. Specifically, the study was designed to:
1. determine farmers’ learning needs in understanding causes and effects of climate change.
2. determine objectives of farmer learning programme for climate change mitigation and adaptation,
3. determine appropriate content of farmer learning programme for encouraging mitigation of climate change,
4. determine appropriate content of farmer learning programme that would enhance adaptation to climate change,
5. determine appropriate methods of delivery of farmer learning programme for climate change mitigation and adaptation,
6. determine incentives that would encourage rural farmers’ participation in farmer learning programme for climate change mitigation and adaptation,
7. determine strategies for evaluating farmer learning programme for climate change mitigation and adaptation,
8. develop a draft farmer learning programme for climate change mitigation and adaptation based on findings from purpose number one to seven,
9. validate the draft farmer learning programme for climate change mitigation and adaptation,
10. revise the draft farmer learning programme based on inputs of validates.
Significance of the Study
The significance of the study is particularly in the areas of extension programme planning and administration or implementation as well as curriculum development in
16 agriculture. The findings of the study will be of utmost benefit to the government, extension personnel, researchers, students, environmentalists, scholars and non-governmental organizations (NGOs).
Findings on the learning needs of farmers in the understanding of causes and effects of climate change will be useful to extension personnel, government, researchers and NGOs. Extension personnel will base their activities on the needs and interest of farmers determined through a careful situation analysis. Identification of needs procedurally guides the formulation of programme objectives which of course direct other steps/activities of programme planning and implementation. Such activities and the resultant agricultural extension programme would likely be much more successful as need assessment of farmers is a precursor and a sine qua non for a well-planned agricultural extension programme that will ensure full and active participation of the farmers. Findings from the study will enable government and NGOs to increase their budgetary provisions for the development and execution of farmer learning programme for climate change mitigation and adaptation bearing in mind that the learning needs of the farmers in the understanding of causes and effects of climate change have been determined. Importantly, farmers whose learning needs in the understanding of causes and effects of climate change are determined and afterwards taken care of would be more likely to adopt recommended climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies than other farmers who were not involved in the programming. Researchers will be interested and as well use these findings as a guide when researching into various dimensions of the identified learning needs with a view to provide basis for the development of an alternative programme for climate change mitigation and adaptation that will help farmers cushion the effects of climate change. Curriculum planners will use such identified learning needs of farmers when designing formal
17 education curriculum so that students will be taught various dimensions of farmers’ learning needs as basis for programming in agricultural extension.
Findings on objectives of farmer learning programme for climate change mitigation and adaptation will be useful to extension personnel, farmers and the government. Extension personnel will use the formulated programme objectives as a guide when implementing farmer learning programme for climate change mitigation and adaptation. Objectives of farmer learning programme will equally aid extension personnel in the selection of appropriate programme content, desirable learning experiences as well as forming the bases for valid evaluation of the said programme. The said objectives will also motivate them (extension personnel) to work harder in order to achieve the set target. Findings from this study will also guide the government in making budgetary provisions for instructional resources that will be needed for the realization of the said pre-determined objectives. Farmers will equally be motivated to pursue the realization of the objective of the programme since they were involved in need assessment which formed the basis for the programme objective. This is premised on the fact that farmers would learn best and fast when they have clear objectives/goals.
Findings of the study on appropriate content of farmer learning programme for encouraging climate change mitigation and adaptation will be useful to the government, extension personnel, farmers and NGOs. Government will make budgetary provision for instructional resources as well as deciding the quality of, and recruiting extension personnel to implement the planned farmer learning programme bearing in mind the content that has been determined. This is anchored on the fact that “content” being the totality of what is to be taught to and learned by the farmers will specify instructional resources (human and material components) to be used to facilitate teaching/learning so as to achieve the objective of the instructional process. Government may organize workshop, re-fresher courses and other in-
18 service programmes for extension personnel if the identified content of the farmer learning programme requires such. The extension personnel will be guided by the content of the farmer learning programme in organizing extension teaching and learning situation, especially as it relates to the choice of teaching method/techniques. Farmer learning programme content determined will enable farmers to see the relevance of the programme in solving their problems as well as the relationship between the units and sub-units of the content thereby enhancing farmer’s comprehension and participation in the programme. Curriculum planners may use such identified content of farmer learning programme when designing formal education curriculum. Agriculturally based NGOs will use such content in planning and implementing related farmer learning programmes.
Results on methods of delivery of farmer learning programme for climate change mitigation and adaptation will be useful to the government, extension personnel, NGOs, researchers and curriculum planners. Findings on the appropriate methods of delivery of farmer learning programme for climate change mitigation and adaptation will guide the government in making budgetary provisions for the procurement of delivery facilities (teaching and learning aids). This is so because the choice of certain methods of teaching requires facilities that may not be available or adequate for effective instructional process. More so, some teaching methods place additional responsibilities on the teacher (Extension personnel) who may not have been adequately trained on the usage of such methods. Thus, the need for re-training programmes, in- service training, workshops and seminars with a view to bridge the gap between the possessed and expected teaching skills by extension personnel would only be possible if government had made budgetary provision to finance such processes. The extension personnel will use findings on appropriate methods of delivery of the farmer learning programme to guide his choice of facilities for the teaching of farmers bearing in mind farmers’ group size to be handled in a
19 given teaching period, the type of objective to pursue, nature of subject matter to be taught and the duration of the lesson. NGOs will be guided by such finding when recruiting staff and procuring teaching facilities for the implementation of similar or related agricultural extension programme. Curriculum planner will use such determined methods of delivery of farmer learning programme when planning formal education curriculum. This will ensure that graduates of agricultural extension as well as their counterpart in vocational agricultural education are taught the skills of using such identified methods of delivery of agricultural extension programme. This will of course reduce government expenditure on retraining of newly employed extension personnel on the usage of such delivery methods.
Findings on incentives that would encourage rural farmers’ participation in learning programme for climate change mitigation and adaptation will be useful to the government and NGOs. Government and NGOs (involved in implementation of similar or related agricultural extension programmes) will make budgetary provisions for the procurement or/and usage of such incentives in other to achieved high level of participation in climate change mitigation and adaptation programmes
Findings on strategies for evaluation of farmer learning programme will provide guide to government, agricultural extension personnel and NGOs (involved in similar or related agricultural extension programme) on the best way of assessing if the intended objectives, impact, and expected results of the programme (climate change mitigation and adaptation) are achieved. It will equally provide feedback on programme strength and weaknesses which can then be use to modify or adjust all stages of the programme as well as determining programme worth when compared with other programmes. It will also provide an appropriate way of finding out if the target population that the programme was design for were actually covered during programme implementation. Lastly, appropriate evaluation strategies for climate change
20 mitigation and adaptation programme could be included into formal curriculum of agricultural education and extension programmes when carrying out curriculum reformation. This will ensure that students (who are potential stakeholders in agricultural extension) are taught various evaluation strategies for farmer learning programme for climate change mitigation and adaptation.
With anthropogenic global warming theory emphasizing that human activities are responsible for climate change; need assessment theory guiding how farmers needs in understanding the causes, effects and other issues on climate change should be determined; and theory of change and R & D model providing procedure on how the programme should be developed and implemented to achieve the desired positive change in behaviour of farmers, this study will achieve its theoretical significance. Also the findings will justify the adoption of need assessment theory, R & D model and theory of change in this study. Furthermore, the findings of this study will provide knowledge and basis for the formulation of climate change related theories such as theory of climate change mitigation, theory of climate change adaptation and theory of incentives for climate change control. Finally, if the proposed programme is effectively implemented, farmers will change some of their farming practices and then adopt appropriate strategies that will encourage mitigation of, and enhanced adaptation to climate change.
Research Questions
The following research questions were formulated to guide the study.
1 What are the learning needs of farmers that will enable them understand the causes and effects of climate change in Cross River State?
2 What should constitute the objectives of farmer learning programme for climate change mitigation and adaptation in Cross River State?
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3 What should constitute appropriate content of farmer learning programme for encouraging climate change mitigation in Cross River State?
4 What should constitute appropriate content of farmer learning programme that would enhance adaptation to climate change in Cross River State?
5 What are appropriate methods for delivering farmer learning programme for climate change mitigation and adaptation in Cross River State?
6 What are incentives that will encourage rural farmers’ participation in a learning programme for climate change mitigation and adaptation in Cross River State?
7 What are appropriate strategies for evaluating farmer learning programme for climate change mitigation and adaptation in Cross River State?
Hypotheses
The following null hypotheses were formulated in line with the purpose of this study and were tested at 0.05 level of significance.
Ho1 There is no significant difference in the mean responses of Agricultural extension agents, Agricultural Education lecturers and Agricultural extension lecturers on objectives of farmer learning programme for climate change mitigation and adaptation in Cross River State.
Ho2 There is no significant difference in the mean responses of Agricultural extension agents, Agricultural Education lecturers and Agricultural Extension lecturers on appropriate content of farmer learning programme for encouraging climate change mitigation in Cross River State.
Ho3: There is no significant difference in the mean responses of Agricultural extension agents, Agricultural Education lecturers and Agricultural Extension lecturers on appropriate content of farmer learning programme for enhancing adaptation to climate change in Cross River State.
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Ho4: There is no significant difference in the mean responses of Agricultural extension agents, Agricultural Education lecturers and Agricultural Extension lecturers on appropriate methods of delivery of farmer learning programme for climate change mitigation and adaptation in Cross River State
Ho5: Gender has no significant influence on the mean responses of respondents on appropriate incentives that would encourage farmers’ participation in farmer learning programme for climate change mitigation and adaptation in Cross River State.
Scope of the Study
The study was restricted to the development of farmer learning program for climate change
This material content is developed to serve as a GUIDE for students to conduct academic research
DEVELOPMENT OF FARMER LEARNING PROGRAMME FOR CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION AND ADAPTATION IN CROSS RIVER STATE NIGERIA>
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