Determinants of perception of climate change and adaptation strategies of coffee-based agroforestry farmers in western Ethiopia

Abstract

Background: A range of local social and environmental factors has an impact on farmers' views of climate change and choices on the use of coping mechanisms. This study examines the factors that are limiting farmers' perceptions of climate change and their coping mechanisms in Gimbi district, Western Ethiopia. Methods: A household survey and focus group discussion were employed to collect relevant data. A total of 402 randomly selected households and six focus group discussions containing 72 participants were used to gather data. Binary logit models were used to analyze the collected data. Results: Farmers noted that some of the signs of climate change included increasing temperature, erratic rainfall, late onset of rainfall, and early cessation of rainfall. We discovered that there are three distinct sets of climate adaption strategies used by farmers: crop management, soil and water conservation and intensive farm management. The primary determinants of farmers' perceptions of climate change and adaptation techniques were household head age, education, soil fertility, market access, and agricultural training. Age, education, and soil fertility level were the characteristics that significantly impacted farmers' perspectives and coping mechanisms among the primary drivers evaluated in the area. Use of Agroforestry, shifting planting dates, and fertilizer application were all essential farming practices used as climate adaptation measures. Conclusions: Both socioeconomic and environmental factors have found to affect farmers’ perceptions of climate change in the area. The existing socioeconomic and environmental factors, in turn, affect their choice of strategies to adapt to climate change. When implementing climate change adaption strategies, it is critical to assess farmers' level of awareness of climate change and their coping strategies, as well as the factors limiting their ability to adapt to climate change.

Determinants of farmers’ adaptation strategies to climate change impacts in northwestern Ethiopia

“…The results also indicated that supplementary feeding for livestock (56%) was the most implemented adaptation response followed by soil and water conservation practices (19%), whereas crop diversification (2.1%) was the least common adaptation response to the adverse impacts of climate extremes by farmers in lowland agro-ecology. This result contradicts with the finding of [ 30 ] who reported that the possibility of using crop diversification was very high in lowland areas. Key informants and focus group discussants also reported that soil and water conservation practices and feeding for livestock were the most widely used adaptation measures in highland and lowland areas of the district.…”