Mihiretu Ademe, Okoyo Eric Ndemo, Lemma Tesfaye
Associate Researcher, Socioeconomic and Agricultural Extension, Sekota Dry-land Agricultural Research Center, Ethiopia.
Senior Lecturer, School of Rural Development and Agricultural Innovation, Haramaya University, Ethiopia.
Heliyon. 2021 Mar 16;7(3):e06529. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2021.e06529. eCollection 2021 Mar.
This study assessed the perceived causes, indicators and impacts of climate change by disaggregating farmers in to adaptor and non-adaptor groups in Goat based agro-pastoral livelihood zone of Ethiopia. The collected quantitative and qualitative data were analysed in descriptive statistics, linear regression, anomaly index, Likert rating scale and conceptual narrations. The findings demonstrated that an increasing temperature and a decreasing rainfall trends were perceived by farmers across the study decades. Higher deforestation rate, rash natural resource exploitation, poor soil and water management rehearses and alarming population growth in descending order were identified as climate change causes. Livestock and crop yield decline, livestock/human diseases epidemics and death, as well as recurrent conflicts due to grazing land were its associated impacts. The status and nature of climate change causes, indicators and impacts were however significantly diverse within similar awareness groups. To mitigate its adverse impacts, the farmers were thus applied livestock, crop and non-agriculture related adaptation strategies. Shortage of finance and eligible household labor combined with the absence of climate related information, training and extension services were hindered farmers to take any measure to the climate change. Therefore, to encourage the farmers' responsiveness, the finding underlines the importance of supplying applicable as well as legitimate natural resource exploitation system, followed by access to climate related information, awareness rising trainings, credit and input delivery services at local and community level.
本研究通过将埃塞俄比亚山羊养殖为主的农牧生计区的农民分为适应者和非适应者群体，评估了气候变化的感知原因、指标和影响。对收集到的定量和定性数据进行了描述性统计、线性回归、异常指数、李克特量表评分和概念叙述分析。研究结果表明，在整个研究的几十年中，农民们都察觉到气温上升和降雨量下降的趋势。森林砍伐率上升、自然资源过度开发、土壤和水资源管理不善以及人口增长惊人（按降序排列）被确定为气候变化的原因。牲畜和作物产量下降、牲畜/人类疾病流行和死亡，以及因放牧地引发的经常性冲突是其相关影响。然而，在具有相似认知的群体中，气候变化的原因、指标和影响的状况和性质存在显著差异。为减轻其不利影响，农民们采用了与牲畜、作物和非农业相关的适应策略。资金短缺和合格家庭劳动力不足，再加上缺乏气候相关信息、培训和推广服务，阻碍了农民采取应对气候变化的任何措施。因此，为鼓励农民做出响应，研究结果强调了提供适用且合理的自然资源开发系统的重要性，其次是在地方和社区层面提供气候相关信息、提高认识的培训、信贷和投入供应服务。
