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Paper short abstract:

The paper present empirical experiences of the understanding, exposure, sensitivity and the adaptation strategies of one the under-researched fishing communities in the continent. the aim is to strengthen the autonomous adaptation strategies used to adapt to both climatic and non-climatic drivers.

Paper long abstract:

Research has demonstrated the vulnerability of sub-Saharan Africa to changes in climatic and non-climatic conditions, especially affecting populations with heavy dependence on the weather. Fishing-dependent livelihoods in Africa are faced by multiscale threats due to low adaptive capacity and sensitivity of the system to both climatic and non-climatic changes and are an under-researched community in terms of the impacts of climate change. This paper therefore investigates the perceptions of the artisanal fisherfolk on climate change and climate variability, the impacts of them on their livelihoods, and the adaptation strategies adopted. The paper utilizes both FGDs and KIIs to collect data from the artisanal fisherfolk and other relevant stakeholders. Results indicate that, they relied on fishing in lakes around their communities and on the river-Niger using autonomous technologies and small manual canoes and boats. The cohort have a supernatural understanding of climate change but can identified climatic changes and it effects on their livelihood. Low quality and quantity of rainfall, climate variability, depletion of water bodies, harmful fishing practices by migrants, acidification of the water bodies, biodiversity loss, lack of interventions, corruption, demographic pressure, inflation, and low working capital are identified as key climatic and non-climatic drivers of vulnerability. Migration to other states or neighbouring countries, farming and economic diversification are the most common adaptation strategies among the fisherfolks. This paper recommends Education, interventions such as provision of credit and insurance facilities, monitoring and evaluation of intervention programmes, and fisherfolks’ cooperatives are possible solutions to the vulnerability of the fishing-dependent livelihoods.