RURAL HOUSEHOLDS AND DROUGHT IN THE SAHEL REGION OF WEST AFRICA: VULNERABILITY AND EFFECTIVE MITIGAT

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RURAL HOUSEHOLDS AND DROUGHT IN THE SAHEL REGION
OF WEST AFRICA VULNERABILITY AND EFFECTIVE
MITIGATION MEASURES.
An AIACC Funded Project (AF 92)
Principal Investigator Dr. A. A. Adepetu, CERHR,
University of Jos, Nigeria Mali Country
Coordinator Dr. Abou Berthe, Institut dEconomie
Rurale, Mali
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THE SAHEL

• A transition between the southern margin of the
  Sahara desert and the savanna regions to the
  south.
• A bio-climatic zone of mainly annual grasses with
  a few shrubs and trees, that receives a mean
  annual rainfall of between 150 and 600mm
• A steep gradient of decreasing rainfall from
  south to north, with an increase in inter-annual
  and spatial variability.

• A zone of cultural transition where the Islamic
  culture from the north mingles with the
  traditional cultures of the south.
• North-south stratification of social systems,
  northerly cultures tend towards pastoralism,
  southerly cultures largely practice sedentary
  agriculture.

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Study Problem

• During the past century, several severe droughts
  have occurred Causing untold human suffering,
  weakened the ecological equilibrium, with
  disastrous effects on the livelihood of the
  people.
• The IPCC TAR notes a likely increase in
  continental drying and drought risk in some
  areas.
• How people perceive droughts as well as their
  resource capability will obviously affect their
  vulnerability and adaptive strategies.
• Quantitative assessment of the adaptive capacity
  and vulnerability of various livelihood groups to
  past and present drought disasters will form a
  basis for, and contribute to understanding future
  V A to drought hazards in the Sahel.

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Aim of Study
To identify vulnerable livelihood groups and
determine the factors that shape their
vulnerability and adaptive capacities in the face
of climate change.
Focus of Study
Selected Rural Communities in Nigeria and Mali.
Places can only be ascribed a vulnerability
ranking in the context of the people who occupy
them
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Why Sustainable Livelihood?

• Adopting a sustainable livelihoods perspective
  on drought vulnerability results in a
  fundamental shift in focus away from the resource
  itself to people, the impact of drought on their
  livelihood strategies, and resource conditions.
• Will ensure that projects tackling drought
  mitigation and adaptation become problem-led
  rather than discipline-led.
• Will lead to a greater understanding of the
  multiple dimensions of drought vulnerability.
  Vulnerability is explicitly a social phenomenon
  related to a human value system.

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Research Questions

• Who are the most vulnerable groups and what
  shapes their vulnerability in the face of climate
  variability and change?
• What shapes the exposure to and ability of
  certain groups to rebound from drought hazards?
• What are the similarities and differences between
  present day vulnerability and adaptation and
  future vulnerability and adaptation to drought
  impacts?
• How does institutional capacity influence the
  capacity of the affected individuals and
  households to cope with/adapt to droughts and
  reduce vulnerability?
• Will adaptive capacities change in the future? If
  so, how?

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Research Objectives

• Collect relevant baseline data from selected
  drought prone communities in Nigeria and Mali to
  identify the conditions that make certain groups
  in the Sahel particularly vulnerable.
• Use the data to develop empirical models of
  present future vulnerabilities and adaptation
  to droughts in the Sahel region of West Africa.
• Identify gender differences in opportunities for
  and obstacles to adaptation among different
  groups that are at risk in the Sahel.
• Provide a multi-disciplinary baseline database
  where change, adaptive strategies, and
  environmental processes can be monitored.

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Research Methodology

• To achieve our objectives, we propose the use of
  a methodology that derives from a
  vulnerability/risk framework, after Downing
  (1992).
• It focuses on current vulnerability, risk of
  present and future climatic variations, and
  responses to reduce present vulnerability and
  improve resiliency to future risks.
• In line with the framework adopted by Jones
  (2001), interactions between stakeholders and
  researchers are an integral part of the
  methodology PRAs, Discussions/workshops.

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Project Framework
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Project Output

• Reports Quarterly and Annual
• Peer-Reviewed Publications
• Collation of Relevant Literature
• Production of Digital Database
• Development of Interactive Vulnerability Map
• Training of Graduate Students on Climate Change
  Impacts
• Community Enlightenment through Workshops and
  Effective Dissemination of Research Results
  
• Input for Developing National Communications and
  Policy

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Where we are

• Project Development
• Policy/Literature Review
• Reconnaissance Survey
• Stakeholder Identification
• Selection of Study communities
• GIS Development
• Capacity Building