Spatial Heterogeneities of Warming Impacts on Corn Yields in Ghana

In this study, we utilize a panel of subnational district-level yields for corn matched to weather data that is spatially interpolated from observed weather station data to identify whether warming impacts exhibit spatial heterogeneities for both the mean and variance of corn yields in Ghana. Results are expected to demonstrate that there exist pertinent regional differences in climate change impacts. Some of these differences will likely be attributed to the localized change in climate, while others will likely be associated with particular agronomic characteristics (e.g. soil type) that can partially mitigate (or exacerbate) the effects of warming temperatures. Climate change impacts on agriculture have been widely researched in recent years. In Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), many of these studies have focused on spatially aggregate impacts at the country or higher level, and typically do not discuss the heterogeneity of within-region impacts. Thus, there is a growing interest in more localized climate change impacts that could help inform regional adaptation within a country. Globally, climate change is estimated to have adverse effects on crop yields. With agriculture being the mainstay of many economies in SSA, it is expected that these economies are especially vulnerable to climate change. Ghana is one of the fastest growing economies in SSA (World Bank Report, 2015). Over 20 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) and two-thirds of agricultural GDP in Ghana are staple crops and livestock production (OECD Report, 2010). It is therefore important to quantify the effect of climate change on crop yields in Ghana. In addition, we explore the extent to which impacts might vary across different agronomic regions of the country as this can aid producers and policy makers in defining potential adaptation mechanisms.