An Assessment of Agricultural Vulnerability in the Context of Global Climate Change: A Case Study in Ha Tinh Province, Vietnam

Abstract

Climate change is considered a major challenge of mankind in the 21st century. Agriculture is known as one of the most vulnerable sectors to climate change. This study aims to evaluate agricultural vulnerability to climate change in Ha Tinh province. The agricultural vulnerability zoning map is presented by using the index method with eight influential indicators across three components: exposure, sensitivity, and adaptive capacity. Agricultural vulnerability is quantified and classified into five levels, namely very low, low, moderate, high, and very high. The results indicated that Ha Tinh’s agriculture was heavily affected by climate change, and the most vulnerable area is found in Huong Khe district and Thach Ha district. People and their activities play an important role in mitigating the vulnerability of agriculture to climate change. The results obtained from this study provide useful information for planning and determining guidelines to help farmers in the area.