IMPACT OF CLIMATE CHANGE ON FISHERY-BASED LIVELIHOODS IN THE NORTHERN REGION

Abstract

Climate change has gained tremendous global attention in recent times, due to the risk it poses to human survival. And in order to reduce the risk of climate change on human beings, there is the need for a research to be conducted to help provide mitigation measures to reduce the negative impact of climate change on human beings. Thus, this study was conducted to determine the impact of climate change on fishery-based livelihoods in the Northern Region of Ghana. Specifically, it examines climate change awareness and perceptions in riparian communities in the Northern Region and establishes the impact of climate change on fish catchability in the study area. The study finally assesses fishers‘ vulnerability to climate change by employing the livelihood vulnerability indexes, and also analyzed the factors that influence fishers‘ decision to diversify. The researcher sampled 270 fishermen for the study. Afterward, the study used a line graph to depict the results of climate change on fish catchability and the livelihood vulnerability index and the Binary Logit model to assess the level of vulnerability and the factors influencing fishermen decision to diversify, respectively. It was concluded that fishermen have low knowledge of climate change. It was further established that climate change affects fish catchability and since the respondents were facing deleterious climate change indicators, they were very vulnerable to climate change. In general, fishermen were vulnerable and fishermen who have a high dependency ratio, less experience, and many household members to support them in fishing were more likely to diversify into other activities than their counterparts. This study recommended that policymakers and other stakeholders and players in the fish value chain should put in measures to educate fishermen on climate change and some adaptation measures to help them to protect water bodies. This will help to reduce the high degree of vulnerability to climate change the respondents are facing in the study area.