ADAPTATION STRATEGIES TO CLIMATE VARIABILITY AND ITS IMPACT ON MULTIDIMENSIONAL FOOD SECURITY AND RESILIENCE OF FARM HOUSEHOLDS IN BENISHANGUL GUMUZ REGIONAL STATE, WESTERN ETHIOPIA

Abstract

Climate variability is one of the quickly spread phenomena and considered as the biggest challenges facing the world in the 21st century which poses the livelihood of the residents at risk. To deal with the current and future impact of climate variability, identification of effective adaptation strategies, their dissemination and adoption at a wider level is crucial. This study investigated adaptation strategies to climate variability and its impact on multidimensional food security and resilience of farm households in Benishangul Gumuz regional state, western Ethiopia. Data from 385 farm households collected in the year 2021/22 were analyzed using statistical method such as principal component analysis, ordered logit, multivariate Probit, and multinomial endogenous switching regression. The principal component analysis based multidimensional food security index computed from the four dimensions revealed that 57.44% of farm households were food insecure. Common adaptation strategies included crop diversification (70%), soil conservation practices (65%), and small-scale irrigation (65%). The resilience capacity index ranged from -4.598 to 3.22, with adaptive capacity being the most significant factor followed by transformative and absorptive capacities. In terms of resilience to climate shocks, the midland agro-ecology showed higher resilience. Factors influencing multidimensional food security included sex, educational level, family size, dependency ratio, access to credit, frequency of extension contacts, farm income, distance from nearest market, access to road and frequency of shocks. The results conveyed that all explanatory variables which are included to influence adaptation strategies were significant except sex and off farm income of farm households. The study found that engagement in adaptation strategies significantly increased multidimensional food security and resilience of farm household. The results emphasized the importance of government policies focusing on education, infrastructure, family planning, access to capital, markets, and training in adaptation strategies to enhance food security and resilience among farm households. Furthermore, inclusion of different indicators for food security dimensions to measure multidimensional food security was recommended for future researchers.