Abstract
Climate variability is a global phenomenon that is posing a threat to the infrastructure and agricultural sector. Intense precipitation often results in the deterioration of rural road infrastructure resulting in inaccessibility. Rainfall and temperature data from 1989 to 2019 was obtained from Kenya Meteorological Department. Data on Greenleaf and cost of repairs and maintenances are from selected tea factories managed by Kenya Tea Development Agency. Data on perception is based on a questionnaire survey of 398 randomly selected tea farmers. Results show that climate variability is experienced in Kericho (p < 0.005). There is a varsity variation in mean maximum temperatures F(0.05, 29) ꞊ 5.564 (p ꞊ 0.009) and mean minimum temperature F(29) =8.503 (p ꞊ 0.000). However, the linear regression analysis shows that rainfall has decreased (y ꞊ 2.5476x - 40.778) while the temperature has increased (y ꞊ 0.028x - 0.4473). There is a significant positive correlation between the amount of rainfall and cost of repairs and maintenances for five factories (r ꞊ 0.122, r = 0.046, r = 0.029, r = 0.255) except one (r = -.261, p ꞊ .466). Therefore, the climate has significantly varied from 1989-2019 and heavy rains occur periodically that damage rural tea roads, thus impacting negatively on tea transportation. There is a need, therefore, for heavy investment of emergency funds for repair and maintenance of rural tea roads based on rainfall variability and heavy rain return period pattern.
Highlights
Climate variabilitydirectly impact road infrastructure by damaging the roads (Solomon, 2007; Lobell et al, 2011; Wheeler & Von Braun, 2013; Le Roux et al, 2019 ), with deteriorated road infrastructure leading to delay in transportation of goods, time loss and road accidents (Nkomo et al, 2019)
There are seven factories managed by Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA) in Kericho that six were randomly selected, but excludes the private and multinational tea companies
Kericho has experienced climate variability over the last three decades where rainfall has been decreasing while temperature increasing, but characterised by increased variability and anomalies
Summary
Climate variability (in)directly impact road infrastructure by damaging the roads (Solomon, 2007; Lobell et al, 2011; Wheeler & Von Braun, 2013; Le Roux et al, 2019 ), with deteriorated road infrastructure leading to delay in transportation of goods, time loss and road accidents (Nkomo et al, 2019). Rural roads play significant roles in reducing poverty and boosting rural income (Le Roux et al, 2016). Climate change and variability have been observed to adversely affect the agricultural industry, with the situation expected to get worse in the future (Ochieng et al, 2016). Tea is one of the most important cash crops worldwide, playing a significant role in rural development and poverty reduction in developing countries (ITC, 2016) and contributes 20% of the national foreign exchange in Kenya (Azapagic et al, 2016)
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