Assessment of the extension workers’ training needs on competences on climate change advisory services in Benue State, Nigeria

Abstract

The study examined the extension workers’ training needs on competences in climate change advisory services in Benue State, Nigeria. A multistage sampling procedure was used in selecting 325 respondents for the study and data was collected via questionnaire administration and analyzed using both descriptive and inferential statistical tools. The main sources of technical advisory service information on climate change are colleagues/Radio (97.2%), friends (96.3%) and Television (96.0%) respectively amongst many. The clienteles claimed to need training on climate change advisory services in understanding concepts of climate change (96.0%), agrochemical skills/weather forecasting (93.2%) as well as recording and reporting climate change impacts (92.9%) among others. The extension workers have favorable perception (76.9%) of climate change. The result of the correlation analysis between the perception and perceived competences of the respondents on climate change shows a positive significance at p=0.01 level of probability among the four (technical, professional, communication and evaluation) competences. Main constraints to effective performance are inadequate access to weather forecasting technologies ( (=2.18), inadequate institutional collaboration =2.12), poor access to climate change adaptation strategies information from government ( =2.11) among others. It was concluded that the respondents needed information in several areas identified in the study. It was therefore recommended that other sources of information on climate change be explored and made proactive in disseminating information. Areas of training needs be enhanced
through periodic capacity-building trainings as well as sustainability of respondents’ perception on climate change.