Agriculture in the Face of Climate-Mediated Flooding in Tropical Africa: Technical Innovations of Fish Farmers in Southwestern Nigeria

Abstract

Agriculture is highly vulnerable to climate change in tropical Africa. Climate change-mediated floods (CCMF) impact negatively on fish farming, with consequences on food security. The need for technical innovations for sustainable fish farming despite CCMF necessitated this study. Three most famous but floodprone fish farming states (Lagos, Ogun, Oyo) in Southwestern Nigeria were sampled for fish farmers with on-farm experience of CCMF but still farming. Respondents were sampled for practiced technical adaptive initiatives for sustenance of fish farming despite CCMF, using interview, group discussion, and field visits. All encountered respondents operated pond fish farming system. The respondents reported that CCMF was unpredictable and have increased from 2012 to 2016. Fourteen encountered adaptive technical innovations based on single/combined diverse techniques of pond fencing, pond embankment modifications, netting and caging, pond slope manipulations, and riverbank modification. Innovations were 35.7% state-shared and 64.3% state-specific. Climate change-mediated flood threatens fish farming but can be technically mitigated using the identified innovations or their modifications in flood-prone fish farming communities in tropical African countries.