Abstract
Climate change and extremes have been adversely affecting food security particularly in rainfed agricultural production systems. In this study, explanatory research design was applied to examine farmers’ climate variability and extremes perceptions against meteorological data. Multi-stage sampling techniques were employed to select sampled households. The data were collected from seven Kebeles of Sekota District 168 randomly selected sample households. Key informant interview, focus group discussion and National Metrological Agency were also sources of data. Descriptive data analysis methods and simple linear regression, nonparametric Mann–Kendall test, and Sen’s methods were used to examine farmers’ perceptions, trends and variability of rainfall and temperature. The results showed that the majority of farmers perceived the rise of temperature (82%) and reduction of rainfall (87%) in their locality. All categories of responders are also aware of the increment of erratic rainfall onset and cessation for the last two decades. Meteorological analysis demonstrates increases in minimum temperature (0.8 °C), maximum temperature (1.4 °C), and reduction of rainfall (40 mm) per decade. The district also experienced variability in the rainfall distribution during summer (CV = 27.8%) and Spring (CV = 58.1%) for the last three decades. This study concludes that farmers’ perception is consistent with the meteorological data trend and variability analysis. In view of the findings, it is recommended that adequate and regular information should be provided to the community about current and emergent climate variability manifestations relevant for agricultural decisions.
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.