Publication Details
Abstract
The study examined adaptive strategies for enhancing sustainable community resources for development in Andoni and Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Areas of Rivers State. The population of the study was 699, members and leaders of community based organisations which comprised 594 members and 105 leaders of registered community based organisations in Andoni and Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Areas in Rivers State. The sample size of the study was 406 respondents comprising 301 members and 105 leaders of registered community based organisations in the study areas. Proportionate stratified sampling technique was adopted in selecting 50% of the members from each of the registered community based organisations, while all the 105 leaders were studied without sampling because it was a manageable size. The instrument used for data collection was a structured questionnaire titled “Adaptive Strategies for enhancing sustainable community resources for development Questionnaire” (ASESCRFD). The instrument was validated by two experts in community development. The reliability of the instrument was established through a pilot study using the Cronbach Alpha Method. A cumulative reliability coefficient of 0.78 was obtained. The responses from the four research questions were analysed with mean and standard deviation. The findings from the study revealed among others that conservation and restoration of ecosystems, natural processes, empowering local communities, identifying and evaluating community strengths, leveraging indigenous knowledge and practices are the types of adaptive strategies used for preserving community resources, the adaptive strategies used for preserving community resources for sustainable community development are effective, and that inadequate financial resources, difficulty in mobilising and engaging communities, absence of local technical capacity and expertise, cconflicting practices between ttraditional and modern conservation approaches, gender roles and cultural norms, climate change impacts such as erosion and flooding, and Weak enforcement of community are the challenges in implementation of adaptive strategies used for enhancing sustainable community resources for Development in Andoni and Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Area. Based on the findings, the study recommended among others that the Rivers State Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Unit, in partnership with the Niger Delta Development Commission, NGOs, and private sector actors, should improve funding access by organising annual proposal-writing workshops for community-based organisations and establishing liaison offices in each LGA. This will enable communities to secure resources from the Nigeria Climate Change Fund, Green Climate Fund, and corporate CSR programmes for adaptation projects.