Impact of Climate Change on Agriculture Sector in Pakistan: A Case of District Lodhran, Southern Punjab-Pakistan
Muhammad Umair Ashraf
Asfa Ashraf
Muhammad Imran
Manzoom Akhter
Climate change is one of the most influential factors that affect agriculture production, and its impact has rapidly increased over the years. It has also affected the production of major crops like cotton, wheat, maize, rice, and sugarcane in Pakistan. The objective of the study was to investigate the impact of climate change on the agriculture sector of Pakistan. For this purpose, a crosssectional study was designed, and farmers (n=385) were approached from district Lodhran located in Southern Punjab-Pakistan using a multistage cluster sampling technique. Data were collected by using a questionnaire as an interview schedule. The descriptive statistics were presented via frequency and percentage, while the Pearson correlation coefficient was applied to fulfil the study objectives. Results showed a significant negative relationship between climate change and agriculture production. In addition, all the variables of the study were negatively associated with endogenous construct including climate change (r= -0.606**, p<0.000), soil water (r=-0.304**; P<.000), crop production (r=-0.477**; P<0.00) food security (r=-0.605**; P<0.00), and pests and disease (r=-0.305**; P<0.00). It was concluded that climate change significantly affected the agriculture production in study area which needs serious attention to address the issue. It is suggested to mobilize the agriculturists to play their active role in guiding and training the uneducated farmers for dealing with climatic changes to avoid their adverse effects on productivity of different crops.
Keywords: Climate change, Agriculture, Crop production, Pakistan
