Abstract
This study investigated the impact of Sustainable Land Management Practices (SLMP) on the smallholder maize farmer’s welfare in the Gert Sibande District in the Mpumalanga Province of South Africa. Farmers’ welfare is paramount to agricultural development and rural vitalisation, especially in sub-Saharan Africa. The aim of the study is to identify the factors that influence the adoption of SLMP and to assess its impact on the net farm income. A multivariate-probit (MVP) model was used to analyse the determinants of SLMP adopted and an efficient endogenous switching regression model (ESRM) was used to estimate the impact of SLMP on the net farm income of the smallholder maize farmers. The MVP results show that household socio-economic characteristics and institutional factors statistically influenced the choice of SLMP. Subsequently, the pair-wise correlation matrix of the MVP model revealed complementarities among all SLMP implemented by the farmers. Similarly, the ESRM treatment effect indicated that the average net farm income of farmers who adopted SLMP were significantly higher than that of the group who did not. Consequently, the study recommended support policies on farmers’ demography, farm-based characteristics, and institutional factors to improve the welfare of the farmers and promote rural vitalisation.
Highlights
Chirakkuzhyil Abhilash and TerenceIt cannot be refuted that agricultural policies have a substantial effect on land-use patterns
Sustainable land management practices (SLMP), the number of years spent in school, who manages the farm, land acquisition, and access to credit all influenced the decision of adopting soil management practices as an SLMP in the study area
The MVP model was employed to analyse the factors that determine the adoption of SLMP
Summary
Chirakkuzhyil Abhilash and TerenceIt cannot be refuted that agricultural policies have a substantial effect on land-use patterns. Besides inducing producers to channel their contributions into areas where their products meet the needs of the nation, subsidising the production of certain crops or inputs modifies land-use patterns. Sustainable land management focuses on combatting agricultural or environmental mishaps, the detrimental impact of climate change and especially land degradation [2,3]. This concept is concerned with the utilisation of land resources such as soil, water, animals, and plants with the aim of providing the goods that will meet the ever-changing needs of people, capitalising on the potential inherent in these resources, and maintaining their environmental utilities [4]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
