Adoption of Climate Smart Agricultural Practices among Small Scale Farmers of Kitutu and Nyaribari Chache in Kisii County, Kenya

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dc.contributor.authorWamalwa, Isaac Wafula
dc.date.accessioned2019-03-19T11:34:20Z
dc.date.available2019-03-19T11:34:20Z
dc.date.issued2017-11
dc.descriptionA Thesis Submitted In Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the School of Environmental Studies of Kenyatta University November,2017en_US
dc.description.abstractClimate variability and change has caused instability in production and decline in productivity exacerbating food insecurity particularly in Latin America, Africa including Kenya and some parts of Asia. The magnitude and frequency of extreme climatic events is projected to increase. The effects of these climatic changes will become even more pronounced among small scale farmers whose farming activities are weather dependent and vulnerable to climate change, and already affected by environmental degradation and socio-economic risks. Effective adaptation to climate change among small scale farmers is therefore of critical importance, and is dependent on adoption of climate smart practices. However, studies have shown low adoption of climate smart farming practices among small scale farmers world over, in Kenya and Kisii county. This study therefore examined factors influencing adoption of climate smart practices among farmers of Kitutu and Nyaribari Chache in Kisii County, evaluated their existing knowledge, attitude and practice of these practices, assessed their perception of climate change, examined the extent of climate information dissemination, and the resultant impact on uptake of these practices. The research adopted a survey research design, where both quantitative and qualitative research strategies were used. Data was gathered through Focus Group Discussions, questionnaires, key informant interviews, observations and desk review. Both simple random and purposive sampling were used to sample 420 small scale farmers and technical officers of the agriculture sector respectively. Data was analysed using both quantitative and qualitative techniques. To test the statistical significance of the findings and relationships between the variables, chi-square test was used. The study revealed low (23.3%) access to weather and climate information, but growing (63.1%) awareness of climate change problem as evidenced by increase in temperature (48.1%), change in rainfall patterns (24.3%), emerging new strains of diseases and pests (40.7%), and decline in production (47%) for over 3 decades. The study further showed an emerging need (74%) for adoption of climate smart practices. The findings also revealed high awareness (66%) and positive attitude (84.5%) of farmers towards climate smart practices, but exhibited low knowledge (15%) and adoption (59.2% - 1.9%) of these practices. The low adoption was shown to be as a result of low diversification of income sources (86%), lack of awareness of available policy provisions (75%), lack of knowledge (85%), financial limitations (64.3%), low access to weather and climate information (76.7%), inadequate extension services (47.5%), dysfunctional farmer groups and weak policy framework. Besides the influence of perceived characteristics of climate smart practices, adoption of climate smart practices was shown to be enhanced by higher income level (P =0.028), educational level (P =0.028), size of the farm (P= 0.0), farming experience (P=0.002), knowledge of the practices (P=0.0), weather and climate information (P=0.0) based on chi-square test results, which were within the significant level (p < 0.05). The study concluded that, while there was an emerging appreciation of climate change problem and need for adoption of climate smart practices, their adoption was mainly constrained by weak legal and policy framework, financial setbacks, limited climate information and knowledge of climate smart practices. The study therefore recommends up scaling of climate and weather information sharing, promotion of skill and knowledge of climate smart practices, development of sound policy and legal framework, and mobilization of fundsen_US
dc.description.sponsorshipKenyatta Universityen_US
dc.identifier.urihttp://ir-library.ku.ac.ke/handle/123456789/19159
dc.language.isoenen_US
dc.publisherKenyatta Universityen_US
dc.titleAdoption of Climate Smart Agricultural Practices among Small Scale Farmers of Kitutu and Nyaribari Chache in Kisii County, Kenyaen_US
dc.typeThesisen_US
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