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Linking agricultural adaptation strategies, food security and vulnerability: evidence from West Africa

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Title Linking agricultural adaptation strategies, food security and vulnerability: evidence from West Africa
 
Creator Douxchamps, Sabine
Silvestri, Silvia
Moussa, Abdoulaye S.
Quirós, Carlos
Somé, Léopold
Herrero, Mario T.
Kristjanson, Patricia M.
Ouédraogo, Mathieu
Thornton, Philip K.
Asten, Piet J.A. van
Zougmoré, Robert B.
Rufino, Mariana C.
Buah, Saaka S.J.
Wijk, Mark T. van
Badiane Ndour, Ndèye Yacine
 
Subject climate change adaptation
adaptation
food security
climate
climatic data
data analysis
agriculture
 
Description Adaptation strategies to reduce smallholder farmers’ vulnerability to climate variability and seasonality are needed given the frequency of extreme weather events predicted to increase during the next decades in sub-Saharan Africa, particularly in West Africa. We explored the linkages between selected agricultural adaptation strategies (crop diversity, soil and water conservation, trees on farm, small ruminants, improved crop varieties, fertilizers), food security, farm household characteristics and farm productivity in three contrasting agro-ecological sites in West Africa (Burkina Faso, Ghana and Senegal). Differences in land area per capita and land productivity largely explained the variation in food security across sites. Based on land size and market orientation, four household types were distinguished (subsistence, diversified, extensive, intensified), with contrasting levels of food security and agricultural adaptation strategies. Income increased steadily with land size, and both income and land productivity increased with degree of market orientation. The adoption of agricultural adaptation strategies was widespread, although the intensity of practice varied across household types. Adaptation strategies improve the food security status of some households, but not all. Some strategies had a significant positive impact on land productivity, while others reduced vulnerability resulting in a more stable cash flow throughout the year. Our results show that for different household types, different adaptation strategies may be ‘climate-smart’. The typology developed in this study gives a good entry point to analyse which practices should be targeted to which type of smallholder farmers, and quantifies the effect of adaptation options on household food security. Subsequently, it will be crucial to empower farmers to access, test and modify these adaptation options, if they were to achieve higher levels of food security.
 
Date 2016-06
2015-09-10T14:54:44Z
2015-09-10T14:54:44Z
 
Type Journal Article
 
Identifier Douxchamps S, Van Wijk MT, Silvestri S, Moussa AS, Quiros C, Ndour N, Buah S, Somé L, Herrero M, Kristjanson P, Ouedraogo M, Thornton PK, Van Asten P, Zougmoré R, Rufino M. 2015. Linking agricultural adaptation strategies, food security and vulnerability: evidence from West Africa. Regional Environmental Change 16(5): 1-13.
1436-3798
1436-378X
https://hdl.handle.net/10568/68108
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10113-015-0838-6
 
Language en
 
Rights Copyrighted; all rights reserved
Open Access
 
Format p. 1305-1317
application/pdf
 
Publisher Springer Science and Business Media LLC
 
Source Regional Environmental Change