"Global Climate Change and Cameroon's Agriculture: evaluating the socio-economic impacts"

Summary

Global warming and the consequent changes in the climates of the world may well be under way. Whatever the consequences may be, they will not be uniform. Many patterns will change -- in weather, in climatic zones, in habitats, in the spread of disease and pests and, of course, in what can be grown where -- and they will change differently in different parts of the globe. This research explores the implications of changes in climatic averages and a range of precipitation levels on agricultural production at regional and national levels in Cameroon. The study analyses the sensitivity of Cameroon's agriculture and looks at the variety of ways in which it would be affected if climatic changes occur in line with most scientific predictions. Preliminary results of the impact of climate change variables on agricultural income in Cameroon suggest that there are multiple long-run equilibrium relationships among agricultural income, rainfall, temperature and other economic variables. Overall, the preliminary findings indicate that given the current levels of output, prices and specialisation, the positive impact of climate change on Cameroon's agriculture with revealed ranges. The preliminary findings highlight the need for public policies that will assist the agricultural sector to adapt to climate variation and potential climate change. Such public policies should be designed to address the ecological zones and regional effects, to assist human adaptation and mitigation of possible disastrous outcome.

Publications

Research Reports

Newsletter