The Impact of Climate Change on Maize (Zea mays) Production; Assessing the Biotic and Abiotic Stress

Climate change is a global phenomenon and has adverse effects and impact on agricultural crops growth and productivity. Over the years, this has periodically reduced the harvest yields and economic value of the crops. In the context, Maize (Zea mays) was taken as a case study and it is one of the most consumed staple crops in the world and can easily be grown globally. Climate change has tremendous impact on its growth and productivity too. This paper reviews effects of Climate Variability in Relation to Biotic and Abiotic Stress, the abiotic stress which has increased due to climate change includes Drought is the most pervasive limitation to the realization of yield potential in maize, heat in which at the end of this century the growing season temperatures will exceed the most extreme seasonal temperatures recorded in the past century. Biotic stresses account for a significant proportion of maize yield losses worldwide which includes the plants diseases and insects - pests. In plants diseases, climate changes have the potential to modify host physiology and resistance, and alter both stages and rates of pathogen development. In insects - pest; increased temperature as a result of climate change can speed up the life cycle of insects leading to a faster increase in pest populations. It has been estimated that a 2?C increase in temperature has the potential to increase the number of insect life cycles during the crop season by one to five times. This paper also reviewed the strategies for mitigating climate related effects of biotic stresses and abiotic stresses on maize yields. For the biotic stresses mitigation, the following strategies and approaches were suggested, Conventional breeding, Molecular breeding, Precision and High Throughput Phenotyping. For the abiotic stresses mitigation, planting of Drought - tolerant maize seedlings could help that boost farmers? yields and incomes, in the face of climate change. In conclusion, varieties with increased resilience abiotic and biotic stresses will play an important role in adaptation and resilience to climate change. Improvedmaize seeds production and deployment, effective policies and management strategies globally will be of a great win.