Abstract:
Sub-Saharan Africa is highly vulnerable to climate change given its low capacities of
resilience to the enormous challenges climate change will pose. Research aimed at evaluating changes
in hydrological trends and methods of adaptation was conducted in the Niger Basin parts of Benin
at the peak of the rainy season in the year 2012. Rainfall and river discharge were analyzed from
1950–2010 in order to generate patterns of changes in the region. Structured questionnaires were used
to evaluate the perceptions of 14 farming communities on climate-related issues and their methods of
adaptations. Mann-Kendall and Pettit trend analyses were conducted for rainfall and river discharge.
The findings indicated that significant decreases characterized rainfall and river discharge in the
period of study. Flash flood was considered the major challenge faced in the region according to
more than 90% of crop, animal, and fish farmers. Aside from that, decrease in water availability was
identified as an additional challenge. Irrigation, diversification, water treatment, drainage, small
dams, and dikes were reported as the common adaptation mechanisms in the catchments. This study
will help in designing sustainable adaptation mechanisms to abrupt changes in the hydrology of
the region.
