Impact of climate change and variability on traditional farming systems: Farmers’ perceptions from south-west, semi-arid Zimbabwe

Ndlovu, Everson; Prinsloo, Barend Louwrens; Roux, Tanya Le

doi:10.4102/jamba.v12i1.742

Cited by 27 publications

(20 citation statements)

References 20 publications

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“…The common climate change phenomena reported by smallholders in Jozini are frequent droughts (89.9%), increasing temperature (67.6%) and changing rainfall patterns (55%) (Figure 3). All three effects are inter-related and are not unique to South Africa but are experienced across the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region (Ndlovu, Prinsloo & Le Roux 2020). KwaZulu-Natal province has been experiencing drought since 2013, albeit at different scales.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Psychological capital and climate change adaptation: Empirical evidence from smallholder farmers in South Africa

Chipfupa

Tagwi

Wale

2021

Jàmbá Journal of Disaster Risk Studies

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There are calls for better empirical models to inform climate change adaptation in smallholder agriculture. Hitherto adaptation studies have failed to comprehensively integrate non-cognitive behavioural factors (e.g. psychological capital), and there is also no common framework for measuring non-cognitive abilities of smallholder farmers. Hence, this study is the first attempt to assess how psychological capital affects climate change adaptation amongst smallholder farmers. The study estimated the multivariate probit regression model using data collected from 328 smallholder farmers in KwaZulu-Natal province, South Africa. The results show an association between some psychological capital indicators and smallholder adaptation decisions. Social networks, having multiple farming objectives, access to credit and the type of farmer (irrigators vs. non-irrigators) were also significant in determining smallholders’ adaptation decisions. In conclusion, the study recommends the need for practical ways for enhancing smallholders’ endowment with key non-cognitive abilities. There is also a need for researchers to develop a comprehensive framework for assessing non-cognitive factors critical for climate change adaptation. This will improve the use of positive psychology theories to advance the literature on climate change adaptation. Support should also be provided to communities facing higher risks of climate change adaptation. More focus should also be given to improve smallholder farmers’ ability to adapt, including access to affordable credit. The role of social networks in information sharing remains critical, and hence their promotion should be prioritised. The findings on multiple objectives in farming were unique to climate change adaptation research, and hence the indicator should be considered in future similar studies.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Psychological capital and climate change adaptation: Empirical evidence from smallholder farmers in South Africa

Chipfupa

Tagwi

Wale

2021

Jàmbá Journal of Disaster Risk Studies

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“…The incidence and severity of drought are predicted to rise due to global climate change. The over-reliance of farmers on rainfall increases the vulnerability of maize production systems to climate variability and change (Kogo et al 2020;Ndlovu et al 2020). Therefore, droughttolerant varieties will play an important role in adaptation to climate change (Kogo et al 2020;Ndlovu et al 2020).…”

Section: Principal Component Analysis Of Traits Considered By Maize Value Chain Actors In Selecting Maize Varietiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The over-reliance of farmers on rainfall increases the vulnerability of maize production systems to climate variability and change (Kogo et al 2020;Ndlovu et al 2020). Therefore, droughttolerant varieties will play an important role in adaptation to climate change (Kogo et al 2020;Ndlovu et al 2020). Farmers and input dealers' strong preference for droughttolerant varieties reflects their perceived vulnerability to drought and also shows their awareness of the potential benefits of drought-tolerant varieties.…”

Section: Principal Component Analysis Of Traits Considered By Maize Value Chain Actors In Selecting Maize Varietiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Trait profile of maize varieties preferred by farmers and value chain actors in northern Ghana

Adu¹,

Badu‐Apraku

Akromah

et al. 2021

Agron. Sustain. Dev.

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Plant breeders’ knowledge of precise traits preferred by variety users would accelerate varietal turnover and widen adoption of newly developed maize varieties in Ghana. The objective of this research was to provide empirical evidence of trait preferences of farmers and other actors in the maize value chain in northern Ghana, based on which research strategies for maize improvement could be formulated. Participatory rural appraisal was conducted in 2016 to determine key traits preferred by maize value chain actors across the three regions in northern Ghana. A total of 279 maize value chain actors were interviewed. Different scoring and ranking techniques were used to assess the maize traits preferred by the different actors. Participatory variety selection trials were also conducted in the Tolon, West Gonja, Binduri, and Sissala East districts in northern Ghana from 2014 to 2016. The mother-baby trial approach was used to evaluate eight hybrids with 3000 farmers. Data on yield and agronomic performance of the hybrids and farmer’s selection criteria were collected. Data analyses were performed using GenStat Edition 16 and SPSS Edition 20 statistical packages. The participatory rural appraisal method identified farmers, input dealers, traders, and processors as the primary maize value chain actors in the study areas. Trait preferences of the different actors overlapped and revolved around grain quality including nutritional value, and stress tolerance and grain yield. Results of the participatory variety selection study revealed that across districts, farmers preferred high-yielding varieties with multiple cobs per plant, white grain endosperm color, and bigger and fully filled cobs. For the first time, our holistic assessment of the trait preferences of key actors of the maize value chain in northern Ghana revealed a comprehensive list of traits, which could be used by breeders to develop varieties that may be preferred by all value chain actors in northern Ghana.

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“…In Africa, three-quarters of the rural poor rely on agriculture for their livelihoods but they generally practice under-productive traditional farming [9][10][11][12]. This is typical in Ghana, where over 70% of rural residents are farmers [13] who widely practice swidden 'slash-and-burn' agriculture characterised by semi-subsistence production and short-term fallows that are integral to maintaining productivity.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

African Forest-Fringe Farmers Benefit from Modern Farming Practices despite High Environmental Impacts

Acheampong

Sloan

Sayer

et al. 2022

Land

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Agricultural expansion has led to a significant loss of habitat and biodiversity in Ghana and throughout West Africa and the tropics generally. Most farmers adopt both organic and inorganic inputs to boost production, with the potential to slow agricultural expansion, but with relatively little consideration of related environmental impacts. In Ghana, where high-input modern farming is rapidly overtaking traditional organic agricultural practices, we examined five stakeholder groups in regard to their perceptions of the environmental, economic, and social costs and benefits of modern, mixed-input, and traditional farming systems. The stakeholder groups included farmers adopting different agricultural practices, as well as governmental and non-governmental natural resource managers. Our findings indicate that the overall perceived costs of modern farming, attributable to large quantities of inorganic inputs, are higher than the overall perceived benefits. Farmers are, however, still motivated to practice modern farming because of perceived higher returns on investment, regardless of environmental impacts, which they tend to discount. Traditional farmers do not use inorganic inputs and instead rely on swidden ‘slash-and-burn’ practices, resulting in declining productivity and soil fertility over time. Since traditional farmers are ultimately forced to encroach into nearby forests to maintain productivity, the perceived environmental sustainability of such farming systems is also limited. Mixed-input farming is not significantly different from modern farming with respect to its perceived environmental and economic traits, because it incorporates agro-chemicals alongside organic practices. Stakeholders’ perceptions and the apparent environmental outcomes of different farming systems suggest that reducing the use of inorganic inputs and promoting the adoption of organic inputs could minimise the negative impacts of agro-chemicals on the forest environment without necessarily compromising productivity. Campaigns to promote low-input or organic agriculture on environmental grounds in West Africa may falter if they fail to recognise farmers’ relatively favourable perceptions of the environmental implications of modern farming practices.

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Impact of climate change and variability on traditional farming systems: Farmers’ perceptions from south-west, semi-arid Zimbabwe

Cited by 27 publications

References 20 publications

Psychological capital and climate change adaptation: Empirical evidence from smallholder farmers in South Africa

Psychological capital and climate change adaptation: Empirical evidence from smallholder farmers in South Africa

Trait profile of maize varieties preferred by farmers and value chain actors in northern Ghana

African Forest-Fringe Farmers Benefit from Modern Farming Practices despite High Environmental Impacts

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