UNIVERSITY OF NIGERIA

THE ROLE OF UNIVERSITY EDUCATION IN ADAPTING

NIGERIAN AGRICULTURE TO CLIMATE CHANGE

A. I ACHIKE AND U. T OKPARA

OUTLINE OF PRESENTATION

Introduction Adaptation: what is in it for Agriculture? What to do The role of University Education - Teaching and Learning - Research and Knowledge Production - Community Engagement and Collaboration The Missing Link in Climate Change Education:

Positioning the Universities Effectively Conclusion References

Key messages of this paper......

Climate change is real and affects all of us; agriculture is highly vulnerable

Climate change impact on agriculture is directly felt in terms of higher temperature, changes in timing and quantity/quality of rains and increase in the frequency of climate hazards, such as droughts, dry spells and floods

As climate change impacts agriculture, the consequences will trickle down to the rest of the economy, creating conditions that might seriously compromise socio-economic development efforts

Key messages…. Adaptation aims at alleviating adverse impacts of climate

change or take advantage of new opportunities presented by climate change

Universities can contribute to a better understanding of climate change issues through their core missions of teaching, research and community engagement

University education provides multidisciplinary professionals who can form networks and partnerships to facilitate climate change research and awareness creation, and help combat the challenges posed by climate change, especially through the promotion of adaptation strategies

Introduction Climate change is one of the most topical

environmental issues in the world today

WHY ?

Freshwater Supply Food Production Human Health

Security Economic Development

Introduction contd...

BUT.................Agriculture is the most vulnerable because it depends on weather and climate

How climate change impacts agriculture: Higher temperatures, changes in timing and the quality

of rains, and an increase in the frequency of climate hazards, such as droughts, dry spells and floods........

We are concerned because: 70% of Nigeria’s population depend on agriculture Nearly 40% of Nigeria’s GDP come from agriculture

Flooded cocoyam at Okwudo, Imo State A drought scene in northern Nigeria

Flooding in an urban area

A drying up water body in Markurdi

Adaptation: what is in it Adaptation: what is in it for Agriculture?for Agriculture?

Adaptation: IPCC (2001): adjustment in ecological, social and economic

systems in response to observed or expected changes in climatic stimuli, and their effects and impacts in order to alleviate adverse impacts of change, or take advantage of new opportunities

Adger et al. (2003): building coping capacity to increase the resilience of the environment and the ability of individuals, groups, communities or organisations to adjust to changes

In agriculture, adaptation incorporates changes in agricultural management practices in response to changes in climatic conditions

Adaptation: what is in it for Agriculture?

The aims of adaptation are to: moderate the adverse effects of unavoidable climate

change through a wide range of actions that are targeted at the vulnerable individuals and groups,

develop flexible and resilient societies and economies that have the capacity to address both the challenges and the opportunities presented by changing climatic conditions.

effectively manage potential climate risks in the present time and over the coming decades as climate changes

Adaptation research undertaken now can help inform decisions by farmers, agro-business and policy makers with implications over a range of timeframes from short-term tactical to long-term strategic planning (Easterling et al., 2007)

What to do......

Adapting agriculture to climate change will be much more systemic than simply a farm-level activity (Howden et al., 2007)

The role of University Education

One ultimate goal of university education globally is to provide solutions to development challenges such as climate change (Kotecha, 2010)

Call for university education to play a more active role in:

- understanding the impacts of climate change

- development of effective adaptation responses to climate change through generation of ‘CLIMATE KNOWLEDGE’

Role of University Education...

Several institutions already very active in climate change impact and adaptation research and teaching:

Australia: Australian National University offers a Masters programme in climate change),

U.S.A: Arizona State University and Columbia University have Master of Science in Sustainability Management and Climate and Society,

U.K: the Universities of Greenwich and Sussex offer Climate Change related courses at Masters and Doctoral levels,

South Africa: Stellenbosch University offers Masters courses in Sustainability, capturing climate change, vulnerability and adaptation

The role of University Education..

Key Role

Role of University Education....

academic teaching entails the transfer of knowledge from the academic to the student (the individual being tutored)

research involves the process of undertaking scientific or social science investigation or enquiry and publishing the results thereof

community engagement provides an opportunity for transmitting and applying the knowledge generated through these processes

Providing locally relevant ‘climate knowledge’ is critical in the Nigerian agricultural context

Role 1: Teaching and Learning

Climate change teaching and learning focuses on developing:

the conceptual, methodological and analytical tools necessary to understand developments in a range

of climate change issues (Kotecha, 2010)

Involves the:

integration of climate change and adaptation concerns in curriculum development or curriculum re-orientation,

development of new or specialised programmes and, establishment of joint programmes and student exchange

programmes to enhance innovations in teaching Provision of locally relevant training based on local circumstances,

experiences and context is key

Role 1 contd.............

Graduating university students need to: be well versed with the challenges posed by climate

change if they are going to advise farmers and communities they will be working with appropriately.

understand the implications of climate change on economic development and

understand the various International Conventions and Protocols surrounding climate change:

the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), Kyoto Protocol, and a range of other informal collaborations and dialogues that provide both a framework that supports cooperation and a foundation on which to build further collective actions

Role 1 contd…………..Sanni et al. 2010 summarised the items being incorporated within the climate change teaching and learning component for effectiveness:

training targetted on future experts, agriculturists, students and relevant stakeholders,

teaching basic concepts of climate change and adaptation in seminars, conferences and workshops,

institutions liaising with international experts (especially IPCC and UNEP) to provide training on the methods and tools for assessing vulnerability and adaptation and constructing scenarios of climate and socioeconomic conditions,

encouraging trained students to participate actively in field works, like introducing them to local farmers and communities that are vulnerable to climate change impacts,

setting up of experimental farms where documented adaptation techniques can be tested.

Role 2: Research and Knowledge Production

Scientists in Universities recognise that the unprecedented rate and magnitude of climate change presents great challenge to farmers, researchers and policy makers

The products of climate change-agriculture research have great potential for much wider adoption; and

their adoption will build the resilience of several vulnerable groups to current weather variability and uncertainty and to future climate change

Role 2 Contd……… drought, heat and flood tolerant crop varieties, new

ways to irrigate crops and better ways to management soils are some of the products of research that hold great promise to help farmers today and in the future

livestock keepers can choose improved breeds to reduce their vulnerability;

there are many innovative options (produced by research) to improve the sustainability of fisheries and aquaculture systems under climate change in some African regions (Kotecha, 2009)

Role 2 Contd………………. Incorporating activities on climate change science,

impact analysis and adaptation strategies in research priorities and programmes is essential to generating climate knowledge in Nigeria

Establishing dedicated research programmes on climate change, as seen in most Universities in developed countries, will be helpful in the Nigerian context

Role 2 Contd………

Research direction in Nigerian agricultural Universities should be a comprehensive framework that pulls together and integrates:

what is known about the climate system, the way it may change in the future, and the associated impacts on agro ecosystems, the livelihoods of

those who depend on them and food security.

  Links with expertise in climate modelling, climate

forecasting etc can bring critical new sets of skills in the climate change-agricultural research arena (Makungwa, 2010).

Role 3: Community Engagement and Collaboration

Community engagement and collaboration is necessary to:

transmit the product of teaching and research to relevant users

pull together best human and physical resources, including teaching materials to implement effective climate change academic programme, responsive to the local needs of the country

  Delivery of climate change research outputs are

effectively done through multi-level research partnerships

Role 3 Contd………..Collaboration can be: among academic staff across scientific disciplines

within the University or among Universities implementing climate change teaching and research programmes,

with national and international research centres and organisations,

with the users of the product of university education, and

with potential funders of the teaching or research programmes

Role 3 Contd…………….  Collaboration also include the farming communities, the

government (including bilateral and multilateral donor institutions), private firms, companies, non-governmental organisations and other organisations involved in implementing activities related to climate change

Different aspects of climate change require different expertise from different disciplines and these disciplines are located within our university environment

Harnessing such expertise and closely engaging farm communities will help a great deal

The Missing Link in Climate Change Education: Positioning Universities Effectively

University education in Nigeria is bedevilled with myriads of challenges that limit its ability to provide solutions to most Nigeria’s development problems, such as climate change:

enormous brain drain from Africa (Nigeria inclusive) to other countries, nearly 23, 000 qualified academic professionals emigrate from Africa each year in search of greener pastures; many of these are in agriculture and natural resources, areas that are of crucial economic importance for most African countries and relevant to the climate change issues (Yanda, 2010)

The Missing Link…… poor staffing of universities to meet the desired curriculum

coverage teaching and learning predominantly based on curricula adopted

from countries that have colonies in Africa curricula founded on an agricultural philosophy that is focused at

the production of cash crops for consumption by the colonising countries,

teaching mode not learner-centred the learning materials generally not adequately contextualised in

the local environment very little mix of theoretical training with field level experience, in most cases, neither the farm communities nor the private sector

is incorporated in the design and delivery of agricultural curricula

The Missing Link…. Lack of expertise in the climate change subject has

been attributed to the fact that: most of university teaching staff were trained before

climate change became a recognised problem the teaching of climate change issues perceived to

be in the domain of meteorologists and climatologists

climate change is a global problem that is not necessarily related to local issues, thus its non-inclusion in teaching programmes

It is not surprising that university education in Nigeria has so far done very little to integrate climate change issues into education programmes

The Missing Link……

Key challenge now is how to develop good curricula that:

promote critical thinking skills produce relevant teaching and learning resources

that can change the mindsets of people and capacitate educators

These are areas efforts should be channelled to ensure that such need as ‘climate knowledge’ is offered effectively in the country

The Missing Link……..Already there are various disciplinary courses on which climate change science is based and these are being offered in our universities:

environmental science, geography the humanities and other relevant disciplines

Developing new and specialised programmes (such as short courses introducing the concepts of climate change, adaptation and development) that draw on these disciplines is an immediate priority for strengthening and encouraging innovation in teaching and learning

Agriculture-based institutions must move away from traditional approaches to research and include ‘systems analysis’ that provide complete understanding of the climate change issues and generate relevant solutions to climate change

Conclusion University education has enormous role to play in

adapting Nigerian agriculture to climate change

The nexus between climate change, adaptation and development is an under researched phenomenon in Nigeria

It is unclear to what extent new knowledge on climate issues is being integrated into education to build capacity for adaptation, analysis and development of solutions

Conclusion contd… The capacity development needs confronting Nigerian Universities are

on several fronts:

Create awareness and sensitize communities, governments and the private sector about the risks and opportunities of climate change for Nigerian agricultural development prospect

Significantly improve research and knowledge generation to enhance innovation and respond to climate change adaptation needs

Disseminate climate change information and knowledge amongst all relevant stakeholders through community engagement and collaboration

To stay ahead of climate change, higher education institutions in agriculture and natural resources in Nigeria must seek to create the knowledge base needed to go beyond the current knowledge and push the science of climate change and agricultural to new frontiers

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