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Interplay of Climate Variability, Land Use Change, Crop Yield and Farm Households Food Security in Offin River Basin, Ghana

Received: 3 November 2021    Accepted: 27 November 2021    Published: 3 December 2021
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Abstract

Climate variability and adapted land use systems have altered climate systems. Their impact on agro-ecosystems adversely affects crop yield, food security and livelihoods of farm households. This paper examines the coupled effects of climate variability and land use change on crop yield and food security among farm households in the Offin River Basin. The study used remote sensing, geographic information systems, time series climate and crop yield data and farm household survey in examining the impacts of climate variability and land use change on crop yield and farm household food security. Landsat Multi-Spectral Scanner (MSS), Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) and Landsat Enhanced Thematic Mapper plus (ETM+) were used to assess land use and land cover change and agricultural drought conditions in the area. Spline interpolation techniques and Spearmans’ rank correlation were employed to assess the trend and spatial distribution of rainfall and temperatures in the basin. Multiple linear regression model (MLRM) and Pearson correlation were used to assess the effect of rainfall and temperature on major food crop yields. Household Food Balance Model (HFBM) was used to measure food security status at farm household level. The results revealed that climate variability coupled with adapted land use systems in Offin River basin have contributed to massive deforestation, accelerated soil degradation and recurrent agricultural droughts resulting in the loss of productive farmlands and low food crop yields. Household food balance model (HFBM) analysis revealed that 60.8% of the farm households in the basin could not meet the minimum recommended energy level of 2900 kilo calories intake per person per day while 39.2% of farm households were food secured subsisting on more than recommended kilo calories per person per day. Utilization of inland valleys, food crop management practices, soil and water conservation and management technologies, mixed cropping systems and crop diversification were found to have contributed positively and significantly to farm household food security. It is recommended that Government agencies such as MoFA, GASIP and existing Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) should increase investment in soil and water conservation strategies (SWCS) and inland valleys food production systems to enhance food production and food security systems among farm households.

Published in International Journal of Sustainable Development Research (Volume 7, Issue 4)
DOI 10.11648/j.ijsdr.20210704.14
Page(s) 102-116
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Climate Variability, Land Use Change, Food Security, Farm Households, Offin River Basin

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    Mensah-Brako Bismark, Nyatuame Mexoese, Yakanu Nutifafa Pearl, Ahorsu Kojo Samuel, Oppong Kwabena Paul. (2021). Interplay of Climate Variability, Land Use Change, Crop Yield and Farm Households Food Security in Offin River Basin, Ghana. International Journal of Sustainable Development Research, 7(4), 102-116. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijsdr.20210704.14

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    Mensah-Brako Bismark; Nyatuame Mexoese; Yakanu Nutifafa Pearl; Ahorsu Kojo Samuel; Oppong Kwabena Paul. Interplay of Climate Variability, Land Use Change, Crop Yield and Farm Households Food Security in Offin River Basin, Ghana. Int. J. Sustain. Dev. Res. 2021, 7(4), 102-116. doi: 10.11648/j.ijsdr.20210704.14

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    AMA Style

    Mensah-Brako Bismark, Nyatuame Mexoese, Yakanu Nutifafa Pearl, Ahorsu Kojo Samuel, Oppong Kwabena Paul. Interplay of Climate Variability, Land Use Change, Crop Yield and Farm Households Food Security in Offin River Basin, Ghana. Int J Sustain Dev Res. 2021;7(4):102-116. doi: 10.11648/j.ijsdr.20210704.14

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  • @article{10.11648/j.ijsdr.20210704.14,
      author = {Mensah-Brako Bismark and Nyatuame Mexoese and Yakanu Nutifafa Pearl and Ahorsu Kojo Samuel and Oppong Kwabena Paul},
      title = {Interplay of Climate Variability, Land Use Change, Crop Yield and Farm Households Food Security in Offin River Basin, Ghana},
      journal = {International Journal of Sustainable Development Research},
      volume = {7},
      number = {4},
      pages = {102-116},
      doi = {10.11648/j.ijsdr.20210704.14},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijsdr.20210704.14},
      eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijsdr.20210704.14},
      abstract = {Climate variability and adapted land use systems have altered climate systems. Their impact on agro-ecosystems adversely affects crop yield, food security and livelihoods of farm households. This paper examines the coupled effects of climate variability and land use change on crop yield and food security among farm households in the Offin River Basin. The study used remote sensing, geographic information systems, time series climate and crop yield data and farm household survey in examining the impacts of climate variability and land use change on crop yield and farm household food security. Landsat Multi-Spectral Scanner (MSS), Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) and Landsat Enhanced Thematic Mapper plus (ETM+) were used to assess land use and land cover change and agricultural drought conditions in the area. Spline interpolation techniques and Spearmans’ rank correlation were employed to assess the trend and spatial distribution of rainfall and temperatures in the basin. Multiple linear regression model (MLRM) and Pearson correlation were used to assess the effect of rainfall and temperature on major food crop yields. Household Food Balance Model (HFBM) was used to measure food security status at farm household level. The results revealed that climate variability coupled with adapted land use systems in Offin River basin have contributed to massive deforestation, accelerated soil degradation and recurrent agricultural droughts resulting in the loss of productive farmlands and low food crop yields. Household food balance model (HFBM) analysis revealed that 60.8% of the farm households in the basin could not meet the minimum recommended energy level of 2900 kilo calories intake per person per day while 39.2% of farm households were food secured subsisting on more than recommended kilo calories per person per day. Utilization of inland valleys, food crop management practices, soil and water conservation and management technologies, mixed cropping systems and crop diversification were found to have contributed positively and significantly to farm household food security. It is recommended that Government agencies such as MoFA, GASIP and existing Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) should increase investment in soil and water conservation strategies (SWCS) and inland valleys food production systems to enhance food production and food security systems among farm households.},
     year = {2021}
    }
    

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  • TY  - JOUR
    T1  - Interplay of Climate Variability, Land Use Change, Crop Yield and Farm Households Food Security in Offin River Basin, Ghana
    AU  - Mensah-Brako Bismark
    AU  - Nyatuame Mexoese
    AU  - Yakanu Nutifafa Pearl
    AU  - Ahorsu Kojo Samuel
    AU  - Oppong Kwabena Paul
    Y1  - 2021/12/03
    PY  - 2021
    N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijsdr.20210704.14
    DO  - 10.11648/j.ijsdr.20210704.14
    T2  - International Journal of Sustainable Development Research
    JF  - International Journal of Sustainable Development Research
    JO  - International Journal of Sustainable Development Research
    SP  - 102
    EP  - 116
    PB  - Science Publishing Group
    SN  - 2575-1832
    UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijsdr.20210704.14
    AB  - Climate variability and adapted land use systems have altered climate systems. Their impact on agro-ecosystems adversely affects crop yield, food security and livelihoods of farm households. This paper examines the coupled effects of climate variability and land use change on crop yield and food security among farm households in the Offin River Basin. The study used remote sensing, geographic information systems, time series climate and crop yield data and farm household survey in examining the impacts of climate variability and land use change on crop yield and farm household food security. Landsat Multi-Spectral Scanner (MSS), Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) and Landsat Enhanced Thematic Mapper plus (ETM+) were used to assess land use and land cover change and agricultural drought conditions in the area. Spline interpolation techniques and Spearmans’ rank correlation were employed to assess the trend and spatial distribution of rainfall and temperatures in the basin. Multiple linear regression model (MLRM) and Pearson correlation were used to assess the effect of rainfall and temperature on major food crop yields. Household Food Balance Model (HFBM) was used to measure food security status at farm household level. The results revealed that climate variability coupled with adapted land use systems in Offin River basin have contributed to massive deforestation, accelerated soil degradation and recurrent agricultural droughts resulting in the loss of productive farmlands and low food crop yields. Household food balance model (HFBM) analysis revealed that 60.8% of the farm households in the basin could not meet the minimum recommended energy level of 2900 kilo calories intake per person per day while 39.2% of farm households were food secured subsisting on more than recommended kilo calories per person per day. Utilization of inland valleys, food crop management practices, soil and water conservation and management technologies, mixed cropping systems and crop diversification were found to have contributed positively and significantly to farm household food security. It is recommended that Government agencies such as MoFA, GASIP and existing Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) should increase investment in soil and water conservation strategies (SWCS) and inland valleys food production systems to enhance food production and food security systems among farm households.
    VL  - 7
    IS  - 4
    ER  - 

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Author Information
  • Department of Agricultural Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Ho Technical University, Ho, Ghana

  • Department of Agricultural Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Ho Technical University, Ho, Ghana

  • Department of Agricultural Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Ho Technical University, Ho, Ghana

  • Department of Agricultural Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Ho Technical University, Ho, Ghana

  • Department of Agricultural Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Ho Technical University, Ho, Ghana

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