Vulnerability of local farmers’ livelihood to climate variability across different agro ecology zone in Suha watershed, Upper Blue Nile basin, Ethiopia

Abstract

ABSTRACT Ethiopia is frequently mentioned as highly vulnerable to climate variability due to its climate-sensitive agricultural sector. As a result, this study aimed to examine farmers’ vulnerability across the various agroecological zones (AEZs) in the Suha watershed based on survey data from 384 respondents. A considerable difference in the two-measurement index, livelihood vulnerability index and IPCC vulnerability index, was seen across the selected agro-ecological zones. The lowland AEZ was more exposed, had a lower adaptive capacity, and was more vulnerable than the mid/high AEZ. This was confirmed by the LVI-IPCC analysis result, which was found as −0.07, 0.03 and 0.18 for midland, highland and lowland AEZs, respectively. The variation is associated with the difference in agro-ecological and socio-economic factors of the respondents. The results suggested that building well firmed adaptation strategies based on agro-ecological scenarios are vital to reduce the vulnerability of smallholder farmers. Further, understanding the physical and climatic diversity of each agro-ecological zone enables us to identify the appropriate requirements to adapt and minimize the vulnerability of smallholders’ livelihood. In the meantime, adaptation measure based on the above index can be applicable at local area since the appraisal takes farmers’ perception about climate variability into consideration.