ADOPTION OF CLIMATE SMART AGRICULTURAL PRACTICES AND THEIR IMPACT ON SMALLHOLDER FARMERS’ INCOME: THE CASE OF ADAMI TULLU JIDO KOMBOLCHA DISTRICT, EAST SHEWA ZONE, OROMIA REGIONAL STATE, ETHIOPIA

Abstract

Climate smart agriculture is an approach that minimizes the adverse effects of climate change by increasing production, strengthening adaptation, and providing mitigation to smallholder farmers. This study was initiated to identify major climate smart agricultural practices adopted, analyze factors affecting the adoption of climate smart agricultural practices, and evaluate the impact of the adoption of climate smart agricultural practices on the annual income of smallholder farmers in Adami Tullu Jido Kombolcha district. Multi-stage sampling techniques were employed to select the sample households. 363 (198 adopters and 165 non-adopters) sample households were selected randomly from four kebeles. The survey was conducted beginning from the mid February, 2021 to the end of March 2021 G.C. The data was acquired from primary and secondary sources in both quantitative and qualitative formats. Descriptive statistics was used to analyze the demographic, socioeconomic, and institutional characteristics of households. Multivariate probit (MVP) was employed to identify factors influencing adoption of climate-smart agricultural practices, while the Propensity Score Matching (PSM) technique was used to evaluate the impact of adoption of climate-smart agricultural practices on the annual income of households in the study area. The result from the multivariate probit model showed that the age of the household head, weather information, extension services, access to credit, livestock holding, and land size significantly and positively influenced the adoption of climate smart agricultural practices, while distance from the nearest market and from farm land significantly and negatively influenced the adoption of climate smart agricultural practices in the study area. The result from propensity score matching revealed that the average annual income of adopters was higher than the average annual income of non-adopters, which is 91749.74 birr for adopters and 47701.67 birr for non-adopters. Overall, the findings of the study showed that adoption of climate-smart agricultural practices has a positive impact on the annual income of households. Thus, the government, policymakers, and other stakeholders should give consideration to promoting and scaling up climate-smart agricultural practices