Perceived impacts of extreme heat on health and livelihoods in Nigeria

Résumé

Extreme weather events are becoming more frequent and severe in Nigeria, yet empirical evidence on their health and livelihood impacts, particularly across gender and socioeconomic lines, remains limited. This study examines how Nigerian adults perceive and are affected by extreme heat during the dry season, focusing on physical, mental, and financial impacts. A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 368 adults, capturing sociodemographic information, frequency of exposure to hot temperatures and drought, perceived health and financial impacts, and coping strategies. Bayesian cumulative logit models were used to assess associations between heat exposure and adverse outcomes, controlling for gender, income, social cohesion, and region. The sample included 217 men and 151 women, who are mostly educated professionals in urban settings. A substantial proportion of participants reported that extreme heat 'always' or 'usually' affected their physical health (33% of men, 26% of women), mental health (20% of men, 11% of women), and financial well-being (16% of men, 9% of women). Most coping strategies were individual and low-cost, such as taking more showers or drinking more water, while community-oriented behaviors were rare. In multivariable models, perceived frequency of heat was not strongly associated with adverse impacts, but greater perceived drought was significantly linked to higher odds of financial hardship (OR: 1.76, 95% CI: 1.07-2.93). Women reported lower odds than men of experiencing greater physical health impacts (OR: 0.58, 95% CI: 0.33-0.98). These findings highlight that extreme heat is a significant multisystem stressor in Nigeria, with drought more consistently driving financial strain. The predominance of individual coping strategies suggests a need for integrated interventions that combine infrastructure improvements with community-based resilience efforts to mitigate the multifaceted impacts of extreme heat. Observed gender differences in physical health impacts indicate that adaptation strategies should be gender-responsive and sensitive to local labor patterns, mobility and access to resources.

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