The role of drought among agro-pastoral communities in a semi-arid environment: The case of Botswana

Mogotsi, K.; Nyangito, Moses; Nyariki, Dickson M.

doi:10.1016/j.jaridenv.2012.11.006

Cited by 41 publications

(32 citation statements)

References 19 publications

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“…Water harvesting systems for supplemental irrigation, strategies to maximizing plant water availability and plant water uptake capacity, conservation tillage systems, storing excess crop harvests during good years, conservation agriculture, low-impact grazing strategies, use of drought resistant plants Leucaena leucocephala and Opuntia ficus-indica for fodder production and recession agriculture on the margins of reservoirs have all been shown to have at least some degree of success (Lima 1986;Rockström 2003;Archer 2004;Antonino et al 2005;Dubeux et al 2006;Jat et al 2012;Mogotsi et al 2013;Gutiérrez et al 2014). The key challenge, however, remains in the identification of the most successful combination of possible strategies and technologies in a particular context and in its dissemination mechanism over a very large scale to reach the largest number of farmers.…”

Section: Methodology For Adaptation Technology Testingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Climate change adaptation strategies for smallholder farmers in the Brazilian Sertão

Burney

Cesano²,

Russell

et al. 2014

Climatic Change

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Climate models agree that semi-arid regions around the world are likely to experience increased rainfall variability and longer droughts in the coming decades. In regions dependent on agriculture, such changes threaten to aggravate existing food insecurity and economic underdevelopment, and to push migration to urban areas. In the Brazilian semi-arid region, the Sertão, farmers' vulnerability to climate-past, present, and future-stems from several factors, including low yielding production practices and reliance on scarce and seasonally variable water resources. Using interpolated local climate data, we show that, since 1962, in the Bacia do Jacuípe-one of the poorest regions in the Sertão of Bahía state-average temperatures have increased~2°C and rainfall has decreased~350 mm. Over the same time period, average milk productivity-the main rural economic activity in the county-has fallen while in Brazil and in Bahía as a whole milk productivity has increased dramatically. This paper teases apart the drivers of climate vulnerability of the Bacia do Jacuípe in relation to the rest of Bahía. We then present the results of a suite of pilot projects by Adapta Sertão, a coalition of organizations working to improve the adaptive capacity of farmers living in the semi-arid region. By testing a number of different technologies and arrangements at the farm level, Adapta Sertão has shown that interventions focused on balanced animal diets and efficient irrigation systems can help reduce (but not eliminate) the dependence of production systems

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Section: Methodology For Adaptation Technology Testingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Climate change adaptation strategies for smallholder farmers in the Brazilian Sertão

Burney

Cesano²,

Russell

et al. 2014

Climatic Change

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show abstract

“…Despite existing evidence that households usually adopt various coping or adaptation strategies simultaneously (see e.g. Silvestri et al 2012, Mogotsi et al 2013, Hooli 2016, Tesfaye and Seifu 2016, only four of the reviewed studies explicitly investigate the interconnectedness and dynamic interactions of individual strategies, i.e. how they complement, substitute, reinforce or undermine each other (e.g.…”

Section: Strategy Dynamicsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Environmental change, adaptation strategies and the relevance of migration in Sub-Saharan drylands

Wiederkehr

Beckmann

Hermans

2018

Environ. Res. Lett.

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Understanding coping and adaptation behaviour of different population groups in the context of global environmental change has become increasingly important, especially in regions with high vulnerability such as Sub-Saharan drylands. In this regard, household strategies tend to be dependent on local and context-specific conditions. However, the strategic development of climate change adaptation measures, as well as natural resource and migration management on national and international level require transferable results and recommendations. In this paper, a first attempt is made to address the lack of meta-knowledge and to create a bigger trans-regional picture on the topic. It provides an exploratory and systematic synthesis of quantitative and qualitative data from 63 studies covering more than 9700 rural households from Sub-Saharan African drylands. Relevant household coping and adaptation strategies under different types of environmental change are assessed with a particular focus on the role and relative significance of migration. The results demonstrate that strategies related to crop, livestock, soil and water management are, by far, the most common. Yet, various forms of migration are reported as strategy by about 23% of the households. Corroborated by qualitative findings, this emphasises the importance of migration for responding to unfavourable environmental conditions at the household level. Based on the synthesised literature, future directions for research needed to support socially and ecologically sustainable coping and adaptation are provided.

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“…These interacting factors and processes range from biological in terms of hunger and the need to satisfy calorie needs, to psychological in terms of personal taste preferences, as well as economical in terms of cost and income differences. Although research participants noted environmental factors that limit the production capacity of Botswana, we have not engaged with them here, as they have been thoroughly covered by several authors (Batisani & Yarnal, 2010;Legwegoh & Hovorka, 2013;Mogotsi et al, 2013). In this paper, we focus on other structural and personal factors that shape food decisions, using the language through which the households explained their decision-making process.…”

Section: Factors Shaping Consumer Food Choice In Gaboronementioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring food choices within the context of nutritional security in Gaborone, Botswana

Legwegoh

Hovorka

2016

Singap J Trop Geogr

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Food consumption experiences remain largely unexplored in urban Africa, despite mounting concerns regarding both over‐ and undernutrition of city dwellers and the potential impact on overall human health and development. This paper seeks to explore the foodstuffs people consume and the factors that shape consumer choice in Gaborone, Botswana. Empirical data were drawn from food diaries and observations of 40 households and discussions with them, plus key informants interviews in Gaborone. Analysis reveals the range of foodstuff people consume, highlighting the prevalence of diets comprised of energy dense, processed and animal‐sourced foods, which are major nutritional security concerns. However these diets were not summarily western or westernizing as per the nutritional transition thesis, as our analysis suggests subtleties of dietary patterns, including the fact that meat‐based diets are traditionally rooted rather than imported and meals tend to comprise both local and western components. The paper also identifies multiple interacting factors influencing consumer food choices, illustrating how food decisions embody context‐specific personal and social circumstances. Understanding how these factors shape what people eat in Gaborone may enable policy makers to facilitate the conditions within which healthy food choices can be made and to address emerging public health and nutrition challenges in African cities.

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The role of drought among agro-pastoral communities in a semi-arid environment: The case of Botswana

Cited by 41 publications

References 19 publications

Climate change adaptation strategies for smallholder farmers in the Brazilian Sertão

Climate change adaptation strategies for smallholder farmers in the Brazilian Sertão

Environmental change, adaptation strategies and the relevance of migration in Sub-Saharan drylands

Exploring food choices within the context of nutritional security in Gaborone, Botswana

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