Globally, changing climate is harming agricultural production, particularly in underdeveloped nations where an older population faces nutritional poverty and hunger. Nepal being a developing country faces the same problem. Millet as one of the major cereal crops has huge potential to solve nutrient and hunger-related problems because of its multiple uses and geographical as well as climate-favorable conditions in Nepal. In this context, this study has examined the determinants of millet production by the use of the Dynamic Ordinary Least Square Method, Fully Modified Least Square Method, and Canonical Cointegrating Regression. Based on the data from 1988 to 2019 we found that fertilizer, cultivated area, and rural population have a significant impact on millet production. The mean temperature has a negative and insignificant impact on millet production. It means climate change had no significant impact on millet production during the study period. As impact of climate change in farming sector is recently realized, millet production might be affected by temperature more in the coming years. In the present context of the weakening hunger index, these findings could be helpful for the policy makers for increasing millet production in Nepal and taking necessary measures for climate adaptive actions. The study recommends the protection of millet-cultivated areas and retaining the active working-age population in rural areas.
Joshi, HP; Techato, K; Phoungthong, K; Panthee, KR
DETERMINANTS OF MILLET PRODUCTION IN NEPAL
Applied Ecology And Environmental Research