A comparison of statistical and participatory clustering of smallholder farming systems – A case study in Northern Ghana

Kuivanen, K.; Michalscheck, Mirja; Descheemaeker, Katrien; Adjei-Nsiah, S.; Mellon-Bedi, S.; Groot, J.C.J.; Alvarez, Stéphanie

doi:10.1016/j.jrurstud.2016.03.015

Cited by 88 publications

(67 citation statements)

References 48 publications

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“…Numerous farm typology studies that incorporate statistical and/or participatory methods aim at exploring typology-specific opportunities based on the focus and objectives of research (Kuivanen et al, 2016;Andersen et al, 2007). Identified opportunities, although technically feasible, may be hampered by other constraints or priorities that may emerge when considering the farm level.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Farm typology analysis and technology assessment: An application in an arid region of South Asia

Kumar

Craufurd²,

Haileslassie

et al. 2019

Land Use Policy

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The design and diffusion of context-specific technologies is centrally important in the multi-dimensional, complex farming systems in arid and semi-arid regions. This paper uses a mixed-method framework to characterize the complexity and heterogeneity of smallholder farming systems and identifies constraints to and opportunities for sustainable intensification. Specifically, the study: (i) characterized farm household typologies based on the diversity of livelihood assets; (ii) co-designed context-specific interventions through an iterative participatory process; and (iii) ex-ante evaluated such interventions to inform multiple stakeholders. We explored farming system diversity using data from 224 farm households in western Rajasthan, India. Employing multivariate statistical techniques and participatory validation, we identified 7 distinct farm household types. Participatory appraisal with multiple stakeholders revealed heterogeneity across farm household types. For instance, the interest of farmers in integrating perennial fruit trees even among the rainfed farm household types markedly varied: household type 1 preferred the multipurpose forestry tree, khejri which requires low labor inputs; household type 2 preferred market-oriented horticulture production; household type 3 did not opt for perennials but for small ruminants; and household type 4 (dominated by women) opted for small horticulture kitchen gardens. The study demonstrated the utility of a mixed-methods approach that addresses multi-dimensional heterogeneity to generate insights and assist in co-designing locally appropriate technologies across different farm types and agro-ecological regions to achieve sustainable intensification.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Farm typology analysis and technology assessment: An application in an arid region of South Asia

Kumar

Craufurd²,

Haileslassie

et al. 2019

Land Use Policy

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“…China ranks first in terms of total small farms followed by India, Indonesia, Bangladesh and Vietnam (Altieri 2009). In Sub Saharan Africa, smallholder farmers comprise 80% of all farms and their traditionally cultivated fields are generally more productive than that of large-scale farmers (Stifel 1989;Bridge 1996;Kuivanen et al 2016). About 70% of Mexician peasants particularly smallholders cultivate their fields with traditional agriculture practices (Aguilar-Jiménez et al 2013).…”

Section: Traditional Agriculture: Concept and Agroecological Featuresmentioning

confidence: 99%

Traditional agriculture: a climate-smart approach for sustainable food production

Singh

2017

Energ. Ecol. Environ.

241

118

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Sustainable food production is one of the major challenges of the twenty-first century in the era of global environmental problems such as climate change, increasing population and natural resource degradation including soil degradation and biodiversity loss. Climate change is among the greatest threats to agricultural systems. Green Revolution though multiplied agricultural production several folds but at the huge environmental cost including climate change. It jeopardized the ecological integrity of agroecosystems by intensive use of fossil fuels, natural resources, agrochemicals and machinery. Moreover, it threatened the age-old traditional agricultural practices. Agriculture is one of the largest sectors that sustain livelihood to maximum number of people and contribute to climate change. Therefore, a climate-smart approach to sustainable food production is the need of hour. Traditional agriculture is getting increased attention worldwide in context of sustainable food production in changing climate. The present article advocates traditional agriculture as a climate-smart approach for the sustainable food production and also deliberates the correlation between climate change and agriculture.

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“…Farming system types are a population of individual farm systems that have broadly similar resource bases, enterprise patterns, household livelihoods and constraints, and for which similar development strategies and interventions would be appropriate. Different approaches can be used to construct farm typologies, such as qualitative, participatory, expert-based and quantitative typologies (Alvarez et al, 2018;Kuivanen et al, 2016;Tittonell et al, 2010). In this study, we chose a predominantly structural, quantitative approach to construct a farm typology, validated by local experts, and opted to model 'real' instead of 'constructed' farms.…”

Section: Livestock Systems Diversity and Drivers Of Changementioning

confidence: 99%

Reducing agro-environmental trade-offs through sustainable livestock intensification across smallholder systems in Northern Tanzania

Paul

Groot

Birnholz

et al. 2019

International Journal of Agricultural Sustainability

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A comparison of statistical and participatory clustering of smallholder farming systems – A case study in Northern Ghana

Cited by 88 publications

References 48 publications

Farm typology analysis and technology assessment: An application in an arid region of South Asia

Farm typology analysis and technology assessment: An application in an arid region of South Asia

Traditional agriculture: a climate-smart approach for sustainable food production

Reducing agro-environmental trade-offs through sustainable livestock intensification across smallholder systems in Northern Tanzania

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