Irrigation Challenges, Water Access, and Adaptation Strategies in Smallholder Farming: Evidence From Gaza Province, Mozambique

Past studies demonstrate that smallholder farmers perceive irrigation access as an infrastructure and socio-economic constraint. Cultural norms, prevailing local agricultural practices, historical and personal experiences influence farmers’ perceptions of irrigation access. In Ghana, especially in the Volta Region, the case is similar. However, some studies found that smallholder farmers’ perceptions of irrigation depend on the geographical location of farms, farm size, access and proximity to water sources, and socio-economic status. Other studies examined farmers’ irrigation infrastructure and water management needs from technical perspectives in the Volta Region. However, there are limited studies on the perceptions and needs of farmers who directly depend on these irrigation systems. This study examined smallholder farmers’ perceptions of irrigation access and needs in Ghana’s Volta Region. A structured questionnaire survey was randomly administered among 282 smallholder farmers in South and North Tongu Districts from January to February 2024 to establish their perceptions of irrigation access and needs. The data was analyzed using SPSS and Excel, and we correlated respondents’ socio-demographic characteristics with their irrigation access to understand the factors influencing farmers’ perceptions. Our study further employed diffusion of innovations and planned behavior theories to explain farmers’ irrigation access. We found that those respondents (68%) who irrigated their farms did not have consistent and sufficient irrigation water access. Only 32% accessed enough irrigation water. Overall, respondents (74%) perceived inadequate infrastructure as the main reason for unreliable irrigation water access. Some respondents (68%) said it was difficult to access irrigation water because water sources were not close enough. Even the cost of connecting irrigation ditches to farms (93%) and the energy/electricity cost of pumping water (89%) were high. Respondents (89%) perceived that irrigation requires additional maintenance costs, and they did not have enough funds to implement it. As such, irrigation was reserved for the rich in society. Theoretically, individual farmers might adopt new technologies or practices over time. Farmers’ behavior is determined by intention, which is influenced by attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control. Household income, education, and gender influenced farmers’ perceptions of irrigation access. The study used the diffusion of innovations theory to explain how farmers’ perception of irrigation is influenced by relative benefits, compatibility with existing practices, and visibility among peers. It also highlighted how attitudes, and social pressure influenced adoption. The findings suggest that incorporating a water access strategy into the districts’ development plans can improve infrastructure and farmers’ resilience.

This study was initiated to analyze smallholder farmers’ vulnerability to climate change-induced shocks and identify the adaptation strategies they practice. The study was conducted in the North Wollo and Wag Hemra zones of the Amhara Regional State, Ethiopia. It employed both qualitative and quantitative methods of data collection. The zones and districts were selected purposively based on the frequency of shocks and the sample Kebeles 1 and sample respondents were selected randomly. Quantitative data were collected using a household survey, whereas qualitative data were collected via focus group discussions, key informant interviews, and field observations. While the quantitative data were analyzed by descriptive statistics, the qualitative data were transcribed, coded, organized thematically based on these similarities, and interpreted thematically. The results show that the major climate change-induced shocks in the area were increase in temperature and changes in rainfall-related variables, such as shifts in rainy periods, shortages of rain, and variability of rainfall. In addition, droughts, crop and livestock pests and diseases, and pasture and water scarcity are all widespread in the area. As a result, land degradation and reduced crop and livestock output were identified as the primary impacts due to climate change-induced shocks on smallholder livelihoods. The findings demonstrate that households and communities are extremely vulnerable to climate change-related shocks. To reduce their vulnerability to climate change, smallholder farmers in the area used both autonomous and policy-driven climate change adaptation strategies, such as soil and water conservation practices, haystack preparation, improved crop varieties, fertilizer, pesticide, and herbicide application. Nonetheless, smallholder farmers' vulnerability to climate change-induced shocks persists, owing to the limitations in the implementation of existing adaptation strategies in the area. Limited access to finance, information, and technologies have all been an obstacle in the sector, preventing comprehensive adaptation to climate change. As a result, smallholder farmers' capacity to adopt both autonomous and policy-driven climate change adaptation strategies must be strengthened. Hence use of improved crop and livestock varieties, application of good agricultural practices, construction of micro-and small-scale irrigation structures, and provision of well-coordinated early warning systems are examples of adaptation strategies that could be implemented to reduce vulnerability to climate change-induced shocks and increase farmers' adaptive capacity. • Temperature increases, rainfall variability, and drought were the major shocks. • Low productivity, grass and water scarcity, and pest and disease are major impacts. • Households and communities are particularly vulnerable to climate-related shocks. • To tackle the impacts smallholders are used a variety of adaptation strategies.

About 2.5 billion people lack access to improved sanitation, and 1 billion have no access to any form of sanitation (UNICEF 2013). About 780 million people lack access to an improved water source, a figure that is based on a fairly generous definition incorporating little with respect to reliability, proximity and convenience of access (UNICEF 2013). While the ancient Romans may already have been aware of it (Bradley 2012), water and sanitation came to be regarded as key to improve health in the growing cities of Europe and America in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. A number of notable observational studies were carried out that even with the limited epidemiological tools available at the time all but proved the direct link between water, sanitation and health (Snow 1860; Pringle 1910). By contrast, in the early days of development aid in the post-colonial era, water and sanitation were often not regarded as a health issue, but primarily provided with the aim of making people’s life easier and enable developmental activities. Whoever tried to argue for more investment on health grounds was faced by a lack of epidemiological studies conducted in low-income settings, which led to a renewed interest in research from the 1970s.

Purpose This paper aims to understand the perception of smallholder farmers on climate change, identify major livestock related climate change adaptation (CCA) strategies and their determinants in selected neighboring districts of Tigray and Amhara regions of Ethiopia. Design/methodology/approach A total of 416 household heads were involved in a questionnaire survey using a multistage sampling approach. To understand the socio-economic factors that influence farmers’ perception on climate change (CC) and/or variability, a binary logit model was used. Multinomial logit model was used to identify the determinants of smallholder farmers’ choices of adaptation strategies. Findings Milk reduction, weight loss, feed shortage and frequent animal disease outbreak were indicated as major impacts of CC on livestock production. About 86.2% of the farmers’ exercise CCA measures where livestock health care and management (25%), followed by livelihood diversification (21.5%) and shifting and diversification of livestock species (20.9%) were the top three adaptation measures implemented. Education, knowledge on CCA strategies, access to veterinary service and extension, market access, annual income, non-farm income, total livestock unit, sex of household head and household size were the major determinant factors to farmers’ choice of CCA. Research limitations/implications Concerned authorities working in CC related sectors should give due attention to improve smallholder farmers’ access to extension and veterinary services, market access and climate information to enhance their adaptive capacity to CC impacts. In addition, incorporating climate change awareness trainings into the existing extension packages is crucial to enhance the awareness of farmers on climate change and implement appropriate adaptation strategies. Moreover, it is very essential to provide appropriate herd management and marketing strategy based on the production system to avoid the significant price reduction during drought periods. Practical implications Concerned authorities working in CC related sectors should give due attention to improve smallholder farmers’ access to extension and veterinary services, market access and climate information to enhance their adaptive capacity to CC impacts. In addition, incorporating climate change awareness trainings into the existing extension packages is crucial to implement appropriate adaptation strategies. Moreover, it is very essential to provide appropriate herd management and marketing strategy based on the production system to avoid the significant price reduction during drought periods. Originality/value This research is focused on smallholder crop-livestock farmers, livestock-based CCASs and presents the determinant factors to their choice of adaptation.

The adverse impacts of climate variability and change are felt mostly by smallholder farmers and smallholder farming systems where rainfed agriculture is predominant. Continuous dependence on rain-fed agriculture has led to declining crop productivity and crop failure in most cases as weather patterns shift which is very problematic for crop growth. Agroforestry which is one of the climate-smart, environmentally benign and agroecological practices has been found to mitigate climate change adversities while fostering adaptation, enhancing resilience and attenuating vulnerability especially in smallholder farming systems. However, in Cameroon, limited empirical research has been done to ascertain the role played by agroforestry in climate change adaptation, resilience enhancement and vulnerability attenuation. This paper which is based on an in-depth review of literature was undertaken to uncover what has been done so far in terms of empirical studies tackling the role played by agroforestry in climate change adaptation, resilience and vulnerability attenuation in Cameroon. It was found that most of the empirical studies have been carried out in one agroecological zone – the western highlands of Cameroon, showing that smallholder farmers adopt different agroforestry practices in the face of climate change with the most common being home gardens with livestock, home gardens without livestock, scattered trees on croplands, improved fallows, live fences/hedges and windbreaks, coffeebased agroforestry, cocoa-based agroforestry, apiculture-based agroforestry, fodder banks, and plantation crop-based agroforestry practices. These agroforestry practices provide a plethora of ecosystem services categorized into provisioning, supporting, regulating and cultural which play an important role towards fostering climate change adaptation, enhancing resilience and attenuating vulnerability in smallholder farming systems. From the findings uncovered by this study, it is imperative for more empirical studies to be carried out in the other four agroecological zones of Cameroon where there is a paucity of information regarding the role played by agroforestry towards fostering climate change adaptation, enhancing resilience and attenuating vulnerability in smallholder farming systems.

Ketevan Chapidze E-mail: k.chapidze@iset.ge Visited Lecturer at International Black Sea University Tbilisi, Georgia https://orcid.org/0009-0003-8705-5652 Abstract: (Modern agriculture practices cannot be considered without proper irrigation systems and infrastructure. Besides balancing production fluctuation, Irrigation contributes to increased crop production and productivity in the agriculture sector. As well, irrigated agriculture plays a fundamental role in ensuring food security and self-sufficiency of agricultural products. In recent years, as a result of state investment and rehabilitation of irrigation infrastructure in Georgia, the area of irrigated lands has increased significantly. Besides, the Government of Georgia is implementing actions to rehabilitate and modernize existing irrigation infrastructure and bold investments are envisaged for coming years. This paper seeks to analyze the economic effects of additional irrigation investments in Georgia, namely impact on crop yiled and agriculture sector productivity. The quantitative evidence derived through the analytic technique is based on the survey of agricultural holdings – AGRIS. The analysis showed that the use of irrigation technology exerted positive and significant impact on crop yield and increased production in the agriculture sector, indicating that irrigation significantly contributes to the increasing productivity and can play an important role to reduce imports of agricultural products and increase self-sufficiency and food security of the country. These outcomes are expected to improve with the adoption of more efficient irrigation technologies. Furthermore, in conjunction with advancements in modern agro-technical practices, investments in irrigation are likely to lead to enhanced productivity growth. The land consolidation and more prevelance of individual and efficient irrigation systems will partially address productivity issues in agriculture sector, reduce irrigation costs and foster the development of agricultural commercial practices. Keywords: Agriculture; Irrigation, Crop yield; Survey of agricultural holdings, Propensity Score Matching. JEL classification: C49, C54, Q10, Q16.

Ethiopian Smallholder farmers is highly vulnerable to climate variability and change due to its great reliance on climate sensetive economy .Different empirical evidence's has put forward about climate change perception and adaptation practices.However, the findings of major studies are highly aggregated and are of little help in addressing local peculiarities of perception and adaptation strategies .While, others were vague to understandand and finally difficult to implement at farm level. Hence ,this paper reviews the empirical literature on smallholder farmers’ perceptions and adaptation strategies of climate change in Ethiopia with specific objectives of; to review the Smallholder framers’ perception to climate change, to identify climate change adaptation strategies used by Smallholder farmers’ and to review factors that determine smallholder farmers choice of climate change adaptation strategies in Ethiopia.This paper was prepared through wide spread review of empirical evidence's. The review found that the majority of farmers in Ethiopia are aware of climate change in average change in temperatures and rainfall pattern with passion of weather extremes such as droughts ,floods,pest and disease manifestation. To deal with up the unfavorable sound effects of climate change, farmers have adopted strategies like crop diversification, using improved varieties, changing planting and harvesting dates, irrigation, planting tree crops, water and soil conservation techniques,switching to non-farm income activities, marketing during forage shock, using drought tolerant breed andfodder preservation.But , preference of adaptation strategies differs from place to place, farms to farms, and households capacity. At household level, most of the empirical evidence revealed Agro-ecological setting, sex, education level, landholding, farm income, non-farm income, livestock ownership, access to credit, extension visit, farmer-to-farmer extension, access to climate information and average distance from home to the farm have significant influence on the choice of climate adaptation strategies.The review result depicted that there is much dearth of empirical evidences regarding livestock sectors so far as much of the research is focused on crop sector's.Therefore, it has been suggested to further investigate deep rooted emperical evidence's on adaptation strategies of livestock sectors and available indigenous knowledge especially in pastoral areas.Further more, there is a need to explore impacts of climate change and single adaptation strategies on livelihood of smallholder's farmers at each farm level autonomously. Keywords: adaptation strategies; climate change; Ethiopia, perceptions; Smallholder farmer's DOI: 10.7176/IAGS/82-03 Publication date: May 31 st 2020

Efforts to promote adaptation among smallholder farmers in Ghana have yielded a substantial body of research. Despite the growing body of research on climate adaptation in Ghana, existing studies remain fragmented, lacking a comprehensive synthesis of smallholder farmers' adaptation strategies and barriers. This study makes a novel contribution by providing the first agroecology-specific synthesis of climate change adaptation strategies among Ghanaian smallholder farmers. By disaggregating findings across six ecological zones, it reveals context-specific patterns and barriers, offering an evidence base for locally tailored and transformative adaptation planning within Ghana's agricultural sector. A systematic literature review was performed to assess Ghanaian smallholder farmers' adaptation strategies and identify any existing gaps for future research. From the 497 records reviewed, we identified 61 adaptation strategies employed by smallholder farmers. These strategies were organised into two categories: on-farm strategies-agricultural intensification and extensification-and off-farm strategies-livelihood diversification and migration. Additionally, several significant gaps were identified, including limited research on the effectiveness of adaptation strategies, the role of institutions in enhancing adaptive capacity, and how different livelihood capitals are mobilized, transformed, and combined to reduce livelihood sensitivity. Further gaps include the lack of integrated vulnerability analyses of crop-livestock farming systems and insufficient multi-scale research to examine how climatic and non-climatic stressors vary and interact across scales to exacerbate the vulnerability of farming households. Our findings emphasise the need for all stakeholders to increase investment in contemporary research and sustainable development initiatives to foster transformational adaptation in Ghana's agricultural sector.

Climate‐smart practices that have added benefits of improving agricultural productivity are an imperative for improving smallholder farming. However, there are few insights into how smallholder climate‐smart adaptation practices influence their technical (in)efficiency. Thus, the objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of smallholders’ climate‐smart adaptation practices on their crop production technical efficiency (TE) in the Lemo district of southern Ethiopia. We used focus group discussion, experts’ consultations and household survey to collect data from 600 smallholder crop producers across six rural kebeles. We computed smallholder farmers’ climate change adaptation indices based on experts' consultations and estimated the TE of the smallholder farmers using Stochastic Frontier Analysis. The smallholder farmers in the Lemo district have adopted climate‐smart agricultural practices such as terracing, crop diversification, improved soil amendment practices, varying planting or harvesting schedules, and crop rotation. The smallholder farm households practicing more adaptation strategies on a larger scale were more technically efficient than their counterparts with their TE averaging 11.31, 8.62, and 6.71% for major crops, wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), and teff [Eragrostis tef) (Zucc.) Trotter] production, respectively. Our model also revealed that adaptation to climate change has a positive and significant contribution to the technical efficiency of major crops, wheat, and teff production. Other key determinants of TE are farming experience, education, access to extension services, livestock holdings, and farm household income. Overall, our study suggests a policy shift to promote smallholder farmers adaptation to climate change using climate‐smart practices for an effective response to climate change impact while enhancing TE.

In this article we show that associational relationships and social norms of villages in rural Tanzania are both capital and social. After outlining the various concepts of social capital we tell how and why we created data on social capital using a large-scale household survey in rural Tanzania that was designed to query households about their social connections and attitudes. By using the Social Capital and Poverty Survey (SCPS) and data from a different survey, which also had information on incomes, we show that a village’s social capital has an effect on the incomes of the households in that village, an effect that is empirically large, definitely social, and plausibly causal. Finally, we use the two data sets to examine a number of proximate channels through which social capital appears to operate.

This paper explores smallholder farmers’ perceptions of and adaptations to water scarcity in an irrigated system in south-eastern Mexico. Data from 85 farmers in four communities were collected through semi-structured interviews. The results show that farmers’ adaptations are stimulated by their perceptions of the causes and dynamics of water scarcity. Findings also reveal that differences in perceptions of, and adaptations to, water scarcity within communities are due to characteristics such as irrigation techniques, water intake location, productive systems and access to groundwater. This study recommends the implementation of policies based on local conditions to cope with water scarcity.

Recent studies suggest that smallholder farmers’ perceptions rather than exact meteorological data strongly influence how they adapt to the changing climate. Therefore, we explored the climate change (CC) perceptions and adaptation strategies of coffee farmers in dependence on the meteorological data (1983–2020) along an elevation gradient (1,600–2,000 masl) in the Sidama region, Ethiopia. In total, 351 coffee farmers were randomly selected for household interviews, complemented with key informants (KIs), focus group discussions (FGDs), and field observations. Severity Index (SI) was computed to measure farmers’ perception of CC, followed by a Mann–Kendall test to ascertain climate trends. Weighted Average Index (WAI) was also used to rank adaptation strategies. We detected an increasing temperature and annual rainfall trend. Nevertheless, while farmers agreed on rising temperatures, they perceived rainfall reduction, contradicting the meteorological data. The highest SI was recorded for the rising temperature, followed by the uncertainty of rainfall distribution, increasing number of hot days, late-onset, and reduced amount of rainfall. The SI results with KIs and FGDs confirmed that weather events seemed more variable than in the past two to three decades and affected coffee production. As the most important CC adaptation strategies, the respondents practise agroforestry, application of compost, terrace construction, modification of farming calendar, and crop diversification. Our results also revealed that gender, education, farming experience, family size, access to agricultural and farmer-to-farmer extensions, and credit services affected adopting adaptation strategies. This study confirms that farmers’ perception is more important in shaping the applied adaptation strategies.

This study analyzed smallholder maize farmers' perceptions of climate change vulnerability and adaptation strategies in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. The study used a cross-sectional quantitative approach, with smallholder farmers selected based on farm size (less than 10 hectares). Using simple random sampling techniques, 210 smallholder farmers in South Kivu Province was selected from October and November 2021. The data were analyzed using frequency analysis, non-parametric Mann–Whitney U-tests, Tobit regression model and structural equations modeling, which demonstrated that demographic and socioeconomic factors influenced smallholder farmers' perceptions and adaptation strategies to climate change. The findings revealed that the level of education, size of the field, and activities of smallholder farmers had significant effects on climate change perception and adaptation strategies. Smallholder farmers' perceptions had a negative (p < 1%) influence on maize smallholder farmers' adaptation to climate change. Common efforts should be made to encourage smallholder farmers to feel committed enough to implement climate change adaptation measures that are effective in mitigating or preventing climate change risk. The results of this study would have implications for policies to support maize smallholder farmers in their efforts to mitigate and resilient to climate change in sub-Saharan Africa. Firstly, the promotion of climate literacy must be sufficient to provide farmers with information on climate and forecasting. Secondly, to empower smallholder farmers with means and resources to prevent and reduce the effects of climate change. Lastly, enhancing the current environment for the agriculture sector will advance community inclusivity and food security.

Climate change and variability pose a challenge to the livelihoods of smallholder farmers. Previous studies on climate change in the context of smallholder farming have mainly focused on the influence of socio-economic factors in understanding farmers’ responses to climate change. However, little is known about the effect of psychological capital on climate change adaptation. There are calls for better empirical models and transdisciplinary approaches to understand the underlying drivers of climate change adaptation in smallholder farming systems. This study draws from behavioural decision research to assess psychological factors influencing climate change adaptation in the uMkhanyakude district of KwaZulu-Natal. This study adopted the Theory of Planned Behaviour to understand the effect of psychological capital on climate change adaptation. Data were collected from a sample of 400 smallholder farmers who were randomly selected from the uMkhanyakude district. Survey data were analysed using a multivariate probit regression model. The results of the multivariate probit regression model indicated that psychological capital (attitudes towards climate change, subjective norms, and trust) played an important role in influencing climate change adaptation. Climate change adaptation is also influenced by the gender of the farmer, education level, household size, and Tropical Livestock Units. These findings underscore the role of psychological capital in shaping climate change adaptation. This study recommends using transdisciplinary approaches (i.e., combining economics and psychology) in evaluating farmers’ responses to climate change.

Investment in irrigation infrastructure and technologies, particularly those that reduce on-farm water use have become a major focus of government programs both at a State and Commonwealth level. Particular attention has been given to increasing the uptake of water “saving” technologies among irrigators. The design of programs capable of achieving government objectives at least cost requires an understanding of farm level investment decisions. In this context, the influence of uncertainty on decisions to invest in irrigation technology and infrastructure is examined. The potential for uncertainty to influence investment decisions via strategies to manage risk is demonstrated using the method of real options valuation. The approach is applied to case studies of investment in evaporation mitigation technologies. It is shown that there are circumstances where uncertainty surrounding the value of water savings is significant enough to influence the decision to invest in water saving technologies. The results also demonstrate that where uncertainty exists, rates of subsidy to encourage faster uptake of these technologies need to be higher than those indicated by traditional NPV analysis. This is further exacerbated when irrigators are required to relinquish water entitlements in return for the subsidy.