article · Management of Environmental Quality An International Journal
Smallholder farmers in the Eferatena-Gidem district of Ethiopia widely recognise long-term shifts in temperature and rainfall patterns. Among those who observe these climate variations, approximately 77 per cent implement adaptive actions, although these practices are not transformational in scope. Decisions to adapt are shaped by several socio-economic and institutional factors. Frequent contact with agricultural extension services, participation in tailor-made training, membership in peasant associations, and positive attitudes towards adaptation all encourage farmers to take action. In contrast, older household heads and individuals engaged in off-farm employment show a significantly lower likelihood of adopting climate adaptation measures. These insights highlight that local perceptions and institutional support are critical in guiding farming communities toward climate resilience, offering useful empirical evidence to guide the formulation of targeted adaptation programmes.
Understanding how smallholder farmers perceive climate risks and what drives their adaptation decisions is vital for strengthening agricultural resilience. As rural communities face variable climate patterns, identifying the institutional channels, such as agricultural extension and targeted training, allows policymakers and development practitioners to design effective, context-specific interventions that support vulnerable farming populations.
The abstract does not indicate a direct commercial application or technology pathway. Instead, the research provides applied survey data that could assist agricultural extension providers, non-governmental organisations, and rural development agencies in designing tailored advisory programmes. Any real-world implementation would rely on policy interventions and institutional development rather than commercial market deployment.
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Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore smallholder farmers’ risk perception associated with climate change, the adaptation strategies used and determinants of their adaptation decision behaviour in Eferatena-Gidem district, Ethiopia. Design/methodology/approach The study used household survey methods of data collection. The data were collected using a structured questionnaire survey by interviewing 261 randomly selected smallholder farmers and analysed using both descriptive and inferential data analysis techniques including Participation Index, Adaptation Strategy Index and Binary Logistic Regression Model. Findings Results of the survey revealed that the vast majority of the respondents perceived the long-term changes in temperature and rainfall pattern. Although they are not transformational in nature, the majority (77 per cent) of the respondents who had perceived changes in climate took adaptive measures. Results of the econometric model analysis revealed that farmers’ perceptions of climate change, extension contact frequency, farmers’ attitude towards adaptation measures, tailor-made training and membership of farmers in peasant associations were found to be significant predictors that positively influenced farmers’ decision behaviour, whereas off-farm employment and the age of the household head were found to be negative and significant determinants. Practical implications This study, in general, provides an insight into the risk perception, adaptive response and determinants of farmers’ decision behaviour in implementing response strategies and suggests that policies and strategies intended at building the adaptive capacity of the farming community in the study area need to take into account the aforementioned significant factors and framers risk perception, as they highly determine their decision behaviour and help in designing effective and context-specific adaptation strategy. Originality/value The findings of this study could be informative for policy makers and development practitioners in designing locally specific effective adaptation menu that shapes adaptation to current and future climate risks.
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DOI: 10.1108/meq-04-2019-0076
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