Indian Journal Of Agricultural Research

Smallholder Farmers’ Adoption Decision-making Regarding Soil Erosion Control on Food Security in South Africa

DOI: 10.18805/IJARe.A-533    | Article Id: A-533 | Page : 42-50
Citation :- Smallholder Farmers’ Adoption Decision-making Regarding Soil Erosion Control on Food Security in South Africa.Indian Journal Of Agricultural Research.2021.(55):42-50
I.D. Ighodaro, B.F. Lewu, B.E. Omoruyi ikdavid2004@yahoo.com
Address : Department of Agriculture, Faculty of Applied Sciences, Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT), Wellington Campus, Private Bag X8, Wellington, 7654, South Africa.
Submitted Date : 24-01-2020
Accepted Date : 3-08-2020
First Online:

Abstract

Background: The objective of this paper was to evaluate how smallholder farmers’ adoption decision-making regarding the control of soil erosion influence food security in South Africa, using the case of farming at Upper and Lower Areas of Didimana, South Africa. 
Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted on 60 randomly selected farmers. Farmers’ total income was used as a proxy for food security. Data were analysed using the multiple linear regression analysis, because the dependent variable was continuous. 
Result: As expected, farmers who had increases in quality of produce had higher probabilities for increased total income.  Also, farmers who preferred their traditional erosion-control methods as against extension-recommended, had higher potentials for increased overall income, which was unexpected. Further, farmers whose sustainability was impacted the most by soil erosion had lesser probabilities for increases in their overall income. The conclusion is that the adoption of soil erosion-control measures is significant in increasing farmers’ food security potentials in the study area.

Keywords

Adoption decision-making Food security Smallholder farmers Soil erosion Soil erosion control methods South Africa

References

  1. Ajayi, O.C., Akinnifesi, F.K., Sileshi, G. and Chakeredza, S. (2007). Adoption of renewable soil fertility replenishment technologies in the southern African region: lessons learnt and the way forward. Natural Resources Forum. 31: 306-317.
  2. Ajewole, O.C. (2010). Farme’s response to adoption of commercially available organic fertilizers in Oyo State, Nigeria. African Journal of Agricultural Research. 5(18): 2497-2503.
  3. AGRA (2017). Africa Agriculture Status Report: The Business of Smallholder Agriculture in Sub-Saharan Africa. AGRA, Issue No 5, Nairobi, Kenya: Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa.
  4. Alemu, M.D., Kebede, A. and Moges, A. 2019. Farmers’ perception of soil erosion and adoption of soil conservation technologies at Geshy Sub-Catchment, Gojeb River Catchment, Ethiopia. Agricultural Sciences. 10: 46-65.
  5. Asafu-Adjaye, J. (2008). Factors affecting the adoption of soil conservation measures: a case study of Fijian cane farmers. Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics. 33(1):99-117.
  6. Baiyegunhi, L.J.S., Majokweni, Z.P. and Ferrer, S.R.D. (2019). Impact of outsourced agricultural extension program on smallholder farmers’ net farm income in Msinga, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Technology in Society. 57: 1-7. 
  7. Bopp, C., Engler, A., Poortvliet, M. and Jara-Rojas, R. 2019. The role of farmers’ intrinsic motivaton in the effectiveness of policy incentives to promote sustainable agricultural practices. Journal of Environmental Management. 244: 320-327.
  8. Carletto, C., Zezza, A. and Banerjee, R. (2013). Towards better measurement of household food security: harmonizing indicators and the role of household surveys. Global Food Security. 2: 30-40.
  9. Chris Hani District Municipality, (2012-2017). Chris Hani District Municipality: Five Years Integrated Development Plan Final Draft Review 2012-2017. The Office of the Executive Mayor, Chris Hani District Municipality, IDP Report, Queenstown. Pp. 1-180.
  10. DAFF, (2011). Policy Brief: Opportunities and Challenges for Climate-Smart Agriculture in Africa. Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. Retrieved from <https://ccafs.cgiar .org/sites/default/files/assets/docs/au_policybrief_oppor tunitieschallenges.pdf>.
  11. Department of Environmental Affairs, RSA, (2011). South Africa’s Second National Communication Under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. Department of Environmental Affairs. Retrieved from <https://    www. sanbi.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/201111 sasnc publ.pdf>. 
  12. Düvel, G.H. (1991). Towards a model for the promotion of complex innovations through programmed extension. S. Afr. J. Agric.Ext. 20: 70-86.
  13. Düvel, G.H., Chiche, Y. and Steyn, G.J. (2003). Maize production efficiency in the ArsiNegele farming zone of Ethiopia: a gender perspective. S. Afr. J. Agric. Ext. 32: 60-72.
  14. Engelman, R. (2010). Population, climate change and women’s lives. Worldwatch Institute, Washington DC.
  15. Ervin, C.A. and Ervin, D.E. (1982). Factors affecting the use of soil conservation practices: hypotheses, evidence and policy implications. Land Economics. 58(3): 277-292.
  16. Feola, G., Lerner, A.M., Jain, M., Montefrio, M.J.F. and Nichola, K.A. (2015). Researching farmer behaviour in climate change adaptation and sustainable agriculture: lessons learned from five case studies. Journal of Rural Studies. 39: 74-84.
  17. Franzel, S. (2001). Use of indigenous board game, ‘Bao’, for assessing farmers’ preferences among alternative agricultural technologies. In: Tomorrow’s Agriculture: Incentives, Institutions, Infrastructure and Innovations. [G.H. Peters, P. Pingali, (Eds.)]. Ashgate Publishing Ltd, Aldershot. Pp. 416-424.
  18. Glindinning, M. (2016). Soil Erosion is Everyone’s Problem. Washington (DC): Sustainable City Network. Retrieved from <https://www.sustainablecitynetwork.com/topic_channels/environmental/article_983c6f54-64b6-11e6-9087-4b25 f6f2 3e 09.html>. 
  19. Kumar, R. and Ramachandra, T.V. (2003). Water soil and sediment investigation to explore status of aquatic ecosystem. Paper presented at the National Seminar on River Conservation and Management, Organized by the Limnological Association of Kerala, Kerala, January 2 to 4, 2003.
  20. Kašparová, K., Svoboda, R., Severova, L. and Hinke, J. (2019). Evaluation of the performance of Czech agriculture. Indian J. Agric. Res. 53(5): 522-528.
  21. Laerd Statistics 2018. Multiple regression analysis using SPSS statistics. Lund Research Ltd. Retrieved from https://statistics.laerd.com/spss-tutorials/multiple-regression-using-spss-statistics.php.
  22. Lahiff, E. and Cousins, B. (2005). Smallholder agriculture and land reform in South Africa. Institute of Development Studies Bulletin. 36(2): 127-131.
  23. Lal, R. (2015). Restoring soil quality to mitigate soil degradation. Sustainability. 7: 5875-5895.
  24. Lal, R. (2019). Carbon cycling in global drylands. Current Climate Change Reports. 5: 221-232.
  25. Le Roux, J.J. and Hendrik, S. (2014). Soil Erosion in South Africa: Its Nature and Distribution. Retrieved from <https://www. grainsa.co.za/soil-erosion-in-south-africa-its-nature-and -distribution>.
  26. Le Roux, J.J., Newby, T.S. and Sumner, P.D. (2007). Monitoring soil erosion in South Africa at a regional scale: review and recommendations. Pretoria. South African Journal of Science. 103: 329-335.
  27. Libin, B.S., Sukanya, S.N., Thrivikramji, K.P. and Chrips, N.R. (2019). Geomatics model of soil erosion in Chitar sub-watershed, vamanapuram river basin, Kerala, India. International Research Journal of Engineering and Technology. 6(3): 1658-1664.
  28. Makate, C. and Makate, M. (2019). Interceding role of institutional extension services on the livelihood impacts of drought tolerant maize technology adoption in Zimbabwe. Technology in Society. 56: 126-133.
  29. Meijer, S.S., Catacutan, D., Ajayi, O.C., Sileshi, G.W. and Nieuwenhuis, M. (2015). The role of knowledge, attitudes and perceptions in the uptake of agricultural and agroforestry innovations among smallholder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa. International Journal of Agricultural Sustainability. 13(1): 40-54.
  30. Oladele, O.I. and Tekena, S.S. (2010). Factors influencing agricultural extension officers’ knowledge on practice and marketing of organic agriculture in North West Province, South Africa. Life Science Journal 7(3): 91-98.
  31. Panagos, P. et al. (2015a). The new assessment of soil loss by water erosion in Europe. Environmental Science and Policy. 54: 438-447.
  32. Panagos, P., Standardi, G., Borrelli, P., Lugato, E., Montanarella, L. and Bosello, F. (2018). Cost of agricultural productivity loss due to soil erosion in the European Union: from direct cost evaluation approaches to the use of macroeconomic models. Land Degradation and Development. 29: 471-484.
  33. Panagos, P., Borrell, P. and Robinson, D. (2019). FAO calls for actions to reduce global soil erosion. Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1007/s11027-019-09892-3.
  34. Pimentel, D. (2006). Soil erosion: a food and environmental threat. Environment, Development and Sustainability. 8: 119-137.
  35. Rogers, E.M. (1983). Diffusion of innovations. 3rd ed. London: Collier Macmillan.
  36. Rootman, G.T., Stevens, J.B. and Mollel, N.M. (2015). Policy opportunities to enhance the role of smallholder livestock systems in Limpopo Province of South Africa. S. Afr. J. Agric. Ext. 43(2): 91-104.
  37. Sartori, M. et al. (2019). A linkage between the biophysical and the economic: assessing the global market impacts of soil erosion. Land Use Policy. 86: 299-312
  38. Statistics South Africa, (2017). Poverty Trends in South Africa: An Examination of Absolute Poverty Between 2006 and 2015. StatSA Report, Pretoria (RSA): Statistics South Africa. ISBN: 978-0-621-45754-4. 
  39. Tarasuk, V. (2017). Implications of a basic income guarantee for household food insecurity. Basic Income Guarantee Series. Northern Policy Institute Research. 24:1-24.
  40. Toborn, J. (2011). Adoption of Agricultural Innovations, Converging Narratives and the Role of Swedish Agricultural Research for Development. Sweden: Swedish University of Agriculture Sciences, Draft Discussion Paper.
  41. Venkatesan, S. and Dhanasekararan, K. (2019). Characterization, classification and evaluation of major soils iin Sollapura subwatershed of Chikmagalur district in Karnataka for sustainable crop production. Indian J. Agric. Res. 53(5): 614-618. 
  42. Voegele, J., Roome, J. (2016). The Challenge to be Climate Smart with the World’s Agriculture. Retrieved from <https://blogs. worldbank.org/climatechange/eastasiapacific/people move/miga/impactevaluations/archive/201608>.
  43. Von Maltitz, G.P., et al. (2019). Experiences from the South African land degradation neutrality target setting process. Environmental Science and Policy. 101: 54-62.
  44. Weldu, G., Deribew, A., Tekalign, S. and Redd, R.U. (2017). Spatial Modelling of Soil Erosion Dynamics and its Implication for Conservation Planning: The Case of Gobele Watershed, East Hararghe Zone, Ethiopia, In: W Mohammed, et al. (Eds.). Productivity and Environmental Sustainability for Food Security and Poverty Alleviation. 34th Annual Research Proceedings, 1(1):111-142.
  45. Wolka, K., Mulder, J. and Biazin, B. (2018). Effects of soil and water conservation techniques on crop yield, runoff and soil loss in Sub-Saharan Africa: a review. Agricultural Water Management. 207: 67-79.
  46. World Economic Forum (2017). 11 facts about world population you might not know. Retrieved from <https://www. weforum .org/agenda/2017/07/11-facts-about-world-population-you- might-not-know/.
  47. World Food Summit, (1996). Rome Declaration on World Food Security.
  48. World Health Organization, (2012). Food Security. Retrieved from <http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story028/en/>. 

Global Footprints