Effect of climate change vulnerability on farm technical efficiency in central Africa: the case of rural Cameroun

Abstract

Purpose A major topical issue in the 21st century is climate change, and its impact on humanity cannot be quantified, as it affects agriculture, water levels, settlements and more. This study aims to evaluate the effect of climate change on farm technical efficiency in rural Cameroon and suggest ways for improvement. Design/methodology/approach We employ a two-step approach to assess whether the efficiency of these farms is vulnerable to climate change. In the first step, we calculate efficiency using the stochastic frontier approach with a Cobb–Douglas specification. In the second step, we investigate the effect of climate change on efficiency by applying a Tobit model. The data used come from a questionnaire survey of 419 randomly selected farmers. Findings The findings reveal that the average level of technical efficiency is 62.9%. This implies that there are existing opportunities to increase technical efficiency if resources are used optimally. The results also show that increases in the climate change vulnerability index have statistically significant negative effects on the technical efficiency of farms. This negative relationship is attributable to the adverse influence of the exposure and sensitivity components of the climate change vulnerability index. Originality/value We provide an understanding of the effect of climate change vulnerability on the technical efficiency of farms in rural Cameroon and suggest means of improving it. Additionally, we examine whether the influence of climate change varies across agro-ecological zones.