AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT IN THE NORTHERN SAVANNA OF GHANA Tara Nicole Wood, D.P.H University of Nebraska, 2013 Advisor: Gary L. Hein Abstract: Since declaring independence in 1957, the Republic of Ghana has become a stable constitutional democracy. Northern is one of the warmest region in Ghana with an average daily high temperature of 34 degrees centigrade. Ghana’s economy has grown substantially over the past These factors make the northern regions highly vulnerable to climate … This question is answered in the paper titled “Assessing the Potential Impact of Climate Change on Maize Production in Two Farming Zones of Ghana Using the CERES-Maize Model”. The programme targets the three regions in the northern part of Ghana: the Upper East, Upper West and Northern Regions. In winter, there is much less rainfall in Northern Region than in summer. The rainy season lasts from May to September in the north, from April to October in the center, and from April to November in the south. Ghana is also home to Lake Volta, the world's largest artificial lake. Geography and Climate of Ghana Ghana's topography consists mainly of low plains but its south-central area does have a small plateau. Climate change in Ghana has become a serious threat to livelihoods.
With a yearly average of 34 degrees the climate is very warm, but has only a very few tropical and humid months. Dued to the lesser rain the best time for traveling is from November to March. Northern Region's climate is classified as tropical.
Tamale was the administrative centre for this area and many institutions covering Northern Ghana are based here. These winds come from southern Burkina Faso in the months of December to around April and carry a lot of dust. The main objective of the "Increased Resilience to Climate Change in Northern Ghana Through the Management of Water Resources and Diversification of Livelihoods" programme is to enhance the resilience and adaptive capacity of rural livelihoods to climate impacts and risks on water resources in the northern region of Ghana. The Tamale lies on 195m above sea level Tamale has a tropical climate. It is yearlong warm or hot. No temperature lower than 10° C (50° F ) has ever been recorded in Ghana. Daytime temperatures are high throughout the year, approaching or surpassing 30°C (86°F) on most days, and humidity is also very high, especially along the coast. Maize is a major staple food crop for the majority of Ghanaians and accounts for about 20% of caloric intake. The Köppen-Geiger climate classification is Aw. In most areas, temperatures are highest in March and lowest in August. Northern Ghana consists of three regions, Upper East, Upper West and Northern Region, all of which originally comprised the former Northern Territories. …
Drought and flood are two important climate shocks that affect farms in Northern region of Ghana based on the rainfall distribution in the year. Variation between day and night temperatures is relatively small, but greater in the north, especially in January, because of the harmattan. The dust’s fine particles that are suspended in the air reduce visibility and causes respiratory complications. In Tamale, the average annual temperature is 27.9 °C | 82.2 °F. The climate of the northern region of Ghana is influenced by dry winds blowing from the Sahara desert. The country's warm, humid climate has an annual mean temperature between 26°C and 29°C. The climate of Ghana is tropical, but temperatures vary with season and elevation. Farmers become risk averse after experiencing these climate shocks and would therefore be interested in strategies that would spread future risks and reduce their exposure and vulnerability to these climate shocks.
Compared to other regions of the country, these three northern regions have high degree of exposure to climate variability and change characterized by increasing temperatures and decreasing and erratic rainfall. In Ghana, the climate is tropical, with a dry season in winter and a rainy season in summer due to the African monsoon. Except in … Ghana Table of Contents. Temperatures tend to drop to around 20°C (68°F) drop at night, more noticeably in the relatively dry north than the humid south.
The summers are much rainier than the winters in Tamale. Climate Change And Its Impact On The Livelihood Of Farmers And Agricultural Workers In Ghana 2 1 Introduction 1.1 Climate Change and Its Effects on Social, Political and Economic Development in Africa by Kristina Müller-Kuckelberg Today, global climate change is one of humanity’s greatest challenges. Variations in the principal elements of temperature, rainfall, and humidity that govern the climate are influenced by the movement and interaction of the dry tropical continental air mass, or the harmattan, which blows from the northeast across the Sahara, and the opposing tropical maritime or … This location is classified as Aw by Köppen and Geiger.