Abstract
Degraded landscapes and soil water stress are long-standing problems to smallholder agriculture in the drylands. Despite the important roles of zai technology in restoring degraded landscapes and improving agricultural productivity, the technology is yet to be adopted to its fullest extent. This can be attributed to gender-linked disparities in agricultural technology utilization. The study, therefore, sought to determine gender-specific determinants of zai technology choice and use-intensity. A multistage sampling technique was employed in randomly selecting 133 female-headed households and 267 male-headed households in Tharaka South sub-county. Quantitative data were collected in a cross-sectional survey using an interviewer-administered questionnaire. Using sex-disaggregated data, Chi-square and t-test statistic were employed to test the statistical significance of dummy and mean value of continuous variables, respectively. Gender specific determinants of zai technology choice and use-intensity were determined using the Heckman-two-step econometric model. The results revealed that, more women farmers (44%) were using zai technology as compared to men (38%). Among women farmers, total cultivated land, access to animal-drawn farm implements, and group membership had an influence on zai technology choice. For men, total cultivated land, group membership and access to extension services positively influenced choice of zai technology. With regard to zai technology use-intensity, total land cultivated, livestock densities, group membership and frequency of trainings on soil and water management were important determinants among women farmers. For men, zai technology use-intensity was determined by total cultivated land and farmers’ perceptions on soil erosion. We recommend that, gender-sensitive farm-level policies oriented towards farmer socioeconomic profiles are important deliberations towards choice and intense application of soil and water conservation strategies such as the zai technology.
Highlights
Climate change exacerbates food insecurity as variations in agroclimatic conditions impinge sustainable food production, especially in the dryland systems (IPCC, 2014; Farooq and Siddique, 2017)
The choice of the sub-county was guided by earlier research efforts in the area and the understanding that being a semiarid area, livelihood options are limited and vulnerability levels differ across gender and households
Within female-headed households, the farming experience was significantly different at 10% level, with non-users of zai technology being more experienced in farming (21) when likened to users (17.28) (Table 3)
Summary
Climate change exacerbates food insecurity as variations in agroclimatic conditions impinge sustainable food production, especially in the dryland systems (IPCC, 2014; Farooq and Siddique, 2017). In sub-Sahara Africa (SSA), there is a high incidence of food insecurity where rain-fed subsistence agriculture remains a predominant livelihood strategy for most people residing in the drylands (Shahid and Al-Shankiti, 2013; Barbier and Hochard, 2018). These regions experience erratic rainfall, recurrent dry spells, increasing temperatures, and infertile lands characterized by; diminishing organic matter and reduced biological activity, and this poses limitations for intensifying agricultural productivity (Bradford et al, 2017, 2019; Issahaku and Abdul-Rahaman, 2019). This aggravates production volatility heightening the food crisis in the rural economies (Mganga et al, 2015; Rojas et al, 2016; Sinyolo, 2020)
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