Impacts of Climate Change on West African Fisheries and its Implications on Food Production

Fish constitutes as an important food, commodity and industry in the economies of West African countries. Forecasts of fish production in the future indicate that majority of the fisheries will be affected by climate change, and may cause food insecurity. This review discussed food security threats and other negative consequences associated with climate change in the fisheries production in West Africa. It discussed various aspects of the linkage between food security and fisheries production system in a changing climate and highlight areas of actions for policy makers. The impacts of climate change on most of the fish and fisheries of West Africa were not well understood. However, general knowledge on possible impacts suggests changes may be detrimental to fisheries production and food security from household to regional level. The study suggested that regional cooperation and governments need to focus on immediate and practical priority issues to effectively address long term issue such as climate change. Actions should be taken to improve awareness of fishers and fishing communities about the impacts of climate change on their livelihood. Furthermore, this review suggested thad Diversifying fish sources may enable the region’s rural households to cope and adapt to climate change impacts. Key words: climate change, fisheries, food security, West Afric