Perception and Impact of Climate Change on Human Migration: A Study in Northern Nigeria

Climatic variability is a reality today at all scales and on every corner of the globe. This is partly due to natural processes and is mainly triggered by the persistent anthropogenic changes in the composition of the atmosphere or land use. There is a growing consensus in the literature that the world will witness higher temperatures and changing precipitation levels in the coming decades. The increase may necessitate people to migrate as many crop yields in many low-income countries show evidence of decline. This leads people to migrate from their usual environment in search of other livelihood options to areas with relative advantages of a life-supporting system. The Climate Change and Migration framework was adapted in order to explain the interconnection that influences small-scale farmers to migrate, resulting in occupational adjustment, livelihood re-orientation, social re-identification, and spatial relocation. The push and pull theory of migration was considered most suitable for the discussions on what causes people to move and what attracts them to the new destination. Land-use changes such as; deforestation, desertification, and urbanization are the significant causes of climate change that increase the atmospheric temperature. Farmers have perceived climate variability and identified increasing temperature, delayed onset, intermittent dry spells, and decreasing soil moisture as the critical factors affecting their cultivation and making them migrate due to its consequences on the availability of surface water that support different livelihood activities. To sustainably mitigate the vulnerability, smallholder farmers have mostly taken action on environmental management and diversified their livelihoods through market exchange.