Climate change, food security and sustainable human development in Nigeria: A critical reflection

Abstract

Background: Nigeria is abundant in numerous agro-ecological resources, which should make it a major exporter of food items in the world. Regrettably, it has become a major food importer as a result of food scarcity. The state of food production in the country is worsened by the phenomena of climate change and global warming. These developments have deleterious effects on agricultural activities in general and food production in particular. While there are policies and agencies in the country to combat these developments, it appears they have proved ineffective in the face of increasing inconsistency in government policies, climate change and global warming. The effect of all these phenomena on human development cannot be overemphasised. A nation that cannot feed its population cannot promote development.

Aim: It is against this background that this article, within the framework of dependency theory, examines the issues of climate change, food security and sustainable human development in Nigeria.

Setting: This research is descriptive in nature in the sense that it provides a detailed account of policies on climate change and food production in Nigeria. It is also exploratory because over 29 research studies were consulted and analysed in order to establish the relationship between climate change, food security and sustainable human development in Nigeria.

Methods: This article utilises qualitative, descriptive research methods. This article, which is theoretical in nature, drew its arguments on both primary and secondary data, which included textbooks, journal publications and internet sources.

Results: This article argues that unless concrete efforts are made to mitigate the effects of climate change and ensure increased food production, the country may experience worse cases of food crisis and human underdevelopment.

Conclusion: Consequently, the article recommends, among others, environmental impact assessments before, during and after industrial production activities.