Over the last one and a half centuries ago, the world has warmed by approximately 0.850C. And nowadays, extreme weather events are becoming more intense and frequent. World Health Organization figures show that annually, warming and precipitation trends, due to anthropogenic climate change, have claimed over 150,000 lives globally. Thus, climate change and environmental degradation pose great challenges to humanity. More specifically, their effects on agriculture have been monumental, particularly in developing countries where agriculture is the primary employer and main source of food for majority of the rural poor. Vulnerability of African countries to the impact of climate change continues to increase, making the continent one of the world’s most exposed regions to environmental vicissitudes. Droughts and other climatic extremes have direct impacts on food crops and food supply. People are exposed to climate change through changing weather patterns and indirectly through changes in water, air, food quality and quantity, ecosystems, agriculture, livelihoods, and infrastructure. Climate change currently contributes to the global burden of disease and premature deaths. Its effects on rural populations and regions include increased food insecurity due to geographical shifts in optimum crop-growing conditions and yield changes in crops, reduced water resources for agriculture and human consumption, and rise in sea levels flood leading to loss of cropping land through floods. This paper reviews empirical studies and observations of climate-health relationships in Nigeria. It focuses on the health implications of climate variability, past and present climate change impacts on agriculture, human health, future projections and uncertainties.
Keywords: Climate change, Agricultural productivity, Global warming, Human health, Nigeria
Note: This work is partially presented at 6th Global summit on Climate Change on October 21-22, 2019 Amsterdam, Netherlands
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