Awareness and adoption of climate-resilient practices by smallholder farmers in central and upper eastern Kenya
Document Type
Article
Department
Graduate School of Media and Communications
Abstract
Background: Climate change and soil fertility decline are major hurdles to agricultural ecosystems. Despite the importance of climate-resilient practices (CRPs) in enhancing food security, poverty alleviation and nutritional security, awareness and adoption remain low in most developing countries, including Kenya.
Methodology: We assessed the determinants of simultaneous awareness and adoption of CRPs and their intensity in Central Highlands of Kenya. The CRPs considered in this study were inorganic fertilizer and manure integration, manure, mulching, crop residues, cover crop, crop rotation and intercrop. The study used a cross-sectional survey design and collected data from 400 smallholders in Central Highlands of Kenya. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, multivariate probit and Poisson regression.
Findings: Our findings showed that awareness and adoption of specific CRPs and their intensity were determined by occupation, age, farming experience, household size, soil fertility management, climate change adaptation, agricultural training, and geographical location. Smallholders’ agricultural training was an important determinant of awareness, adoption level, and intensity. Our findings underscored the need for agricultural policymakers and extension systems to design farmer-driven training programs for enhanced awareness and adoption of CRPs.
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e38368
Recommended Citation
Asule, P.,
Musafiri, C.,
Nyabuga, G.,
Kiai, W.,
Kiboi, M.,
Nicolay, G.,
Ngetich, F.
(2024). Awareness and adoption of climate-resilient practices by smallholder farmers in central and upper eastern Kenya.
Available at:
https://ecommons.aku.edu/eastafrica_gsmc/116
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.