The Role of Indigenous Knowledge in Conservation Agriculture: The Case of Lare District in Gambella Region, Ethiopia

Eshetu Nigussie

doi:10.7176/isde/11-1-02

Abstract

This study seeks to identify indigenous conservation agriculture practices by conducting key informant survey on 15 households and to analyze factors influencing the probability of using minimum tillage by employing cross-sectional survey data collected from 120 households using logit model with.STATA12. The findings revealed that farmers had considerable knowledge about minimum tillage, spacing, and row cropping, intercropping and shifting grazing land were the merits for conservation agriculture. Improper seed rate, absence of farm yard manure as fertilizer and burning of crop residues were demerits. The survey respondents were drawn from Lare district of Nuer Zone in Gambella region. The survey result yields households having greater number of livestock and farm labor, good perception of traditional technology and larger size of land are more likely to utilize minimum tillage. By contrast, households having non-farm activity has a strong and negative effect on minimum tillage. This suggests that policy makers can scale up the use of minimum tillage by facilitating a medium of knowledge transfer from elders to youths as age is positively correlated with livestock holding, number of farm labor and land holding as well as minimum tillage, by diffusing the importance of conservation agriculture and by creating awareness about the benefits of diversifying economic activities to split risks by using their resource abundance and endowment advantages. Keywords : indigenous knowledge, conservation agriculture, minimum tillage, logit model DOI : 10.7176/ISDE/11-1-02 Publication date: January 31 st 2020

Highlights

As defined by different literatures the names minimum tillage, zero tillage, no tillage, direct drilling, conservation agriculture, and conservation tillage are some of the commonly used names, (FAO,2011b), (WLA, 2014)
The qualitative data analysis based on the dada gathered or the variables created during investigation, the reliable social research data analyzing techniques like gathering, data generalization, and verification, checking and editing, were applied
The main differences between the two groups of households were observed with respect to livestock holding, age, farm labor, education level and, participation on non-farm activities, access to credit, participation in training, perception of traditional technology, access to remittance, distance to market and land holding

Summary

Introduction

As defined by different literatures the names minimum tillage, zero tillage, no tillage, direct drilling, conservation agriculture, and conservation tillage are some of the commonly used names, (FAO,2011b), (WLA, 2014). In principle key-elements of conservation agriculture (CA) are minimal soil disturbance (minimum or no-tillage), stubble retention, and the implementation of viable crop rotations. CA represents the core components of a new alternative paradigm for the 21st century and calls for a fundamental change in production system thinking. It is counterintuitive, novel and knowledge and management intensive. It has been well understood that CA provides environmental services such as contributing to atmospheric carbon sequestration, preserving biodiversity, managing watersheds and preventing soil erosion (Fowler et al, 2001). According to FAO 2011 the growth of the area under CA has been especially significant in South America where the MERCOSUR countries (Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay) are using the system on about 70% of the total cultivated area. In other words 45% of the total global area under CA is in South America, 32% in the United States of America and Canada, 14% in Australia and New Zealand and 9% in the rest of the world including Europe, Asia and Africa

Methods

Results

Conclusion