Volume 62, Issue 341, May - August 2026

Communication for Development Approaches and Climate Change Adaptation Among Rural Farmers in North-Central Nigeria

Audu Liberty Oseni^1♦

¹Center for Development Communication, Abuja, Nigeria

^♦Corresponding Author
Audu Liberty Oseni, PhD, Center for Development Communication, Abuja, Nigeria

ABSTRACT

A persistent challenge in mobilizing rural farmers for climate change mitigation and adaptation measures is the inability of the state and non-state actors to effectively design and implement communication strategies enabling them to understand climate change issues. This research was conducted to examine the role of Communication for Development (C4D) approaches for climate change mitigation and adaptation, focusing on rural farmers in North-Central Nigeria. Data were collected from 333 rural farmers selected from three farming communities studied through Focus Group Discussions and Questionnaires. The study findings revealed that C4D played a vital role in influencing mitigation and adaptation measures among rural farmers. It established that rural farmers in North-Central Nigeria relied on participatory communication facilitated through C4D to learn about climate change and adaptation measures. The study concluded that rural farmers better understood climate change adaptation measures through the C4D approaches facilitated by local NGOs and farmers. It recommends that governments at all levels, development partners such as Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), and the media deploy C4D approaches when targeting rural farmers for adaptation measures. C4D facilitates a participatory approach and the use of local languages for communication, resulting in farmers' better understanding of climate change issues and improved adaptation practices.

Keywords: Adaptation, Agriculture, Climate Change, Communication, Measures, Rural Farmers

Discovery, 2026, 62, e20d3299

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Published: 25 July 2026