article · International Journal of Climate Change Strategies and Management
Smallholder farming households in South Gondar, Ethiopia, identify persistent drought, delayed rainfall onset, early cessation of rain, and food insecurity as their primary climate risks. In response to these environmental pressures, farming communities employ a range of adaptation practices. These include adjusting crop planting dates, diversifying crop choices, terracing land, planting trees, cultivating drought-tolerant crop varieties, and pursuing off-farm employment. Analysis across the Lay Gayint, Tach Gayint, and Simada districts shows that the adoption of specific measures varies considerably by area. In particular, engagement in off-farm activities, crop diversification, and the cultivation of drought-tolerant crops differ significantly between Lay Gayint and Simada. These variations confirm that adaptation strategies are highly location-specific, underlining the necessity of aligning agricultural interventions with localized community conditions rather than using broad regional approaches.
Climate variability threatens rural food security and agricultural livelihoods. Understanding how farmers perceive changing weather patterns and what strategies they adopt helps policymakers and development practitioners design targeted support. Recognising that adaptation choices differ between neighbouring districts ensures that investments in agricultural inputs, soil management, and economic programmes are tailored to local needs rather than applied uniformly.
The abstract does not indicate a direct commercialisation pathway, as it focuses on empirical policy and development insights. However, the identified demand for drought-tolerant crop varieties and off-farm activities highlights an early-stage opportunity for seed suppliers and agricultural service providers to deliver targeted inputs and training adapted to specific district conditions.
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Purpose The purpose of this paper was to examine smallholder farmers’ perceptions of climate change risks, adaptation responses and the links between adaptation strategies and perceived/experienced climate change risks in South Gondar, Ethiopia. Design/methodology/approach This paper used a convergent mixed methods design, which enables us to concurrently collect quantitative and qualitative data. Survey data was collected from 352 households, stratified into Lay Gayint 138 (39%), Tach Gayint 117 (33%) and Simada district 97 (28%). A four-point Likert scale was used to produce a standardised risk perception index for 14 climate events. Moreover, using a one-way analysis of variance, statistical differences in selecting adaptation strategies between the three districts were measured. A post hoc analysis was also carried out to identify the source of the variation. The findings of this paper are supplemented by qualitative data gathered through focus group discussions and key informant interviews of households who were chosen at random. Findings The standardised climate change risk perception index suggests that persistent drought, delayed onset of rainfall, early termination of rainfall and food insecurity were the major potentially dangerous climate change risks perceived by households in the study area. In response to climate change risks, households used several adaptation strategies such as adjusting crop planting dates, crop diversification, terracing, tree planting, cultivating drought-tolerant crop varieties and off-farm activities. A Tukey’s post hoc test revealed a significant difference in off-farm activities, crop diversification and planting drought-tolerant crop types among the adaptation strategies in the study area between Lay Gayint and Simada districts ( p < 0.05). This difference reconfirms that adaptation strategies are location-specific. Originality/value Although many studies are available on coping and adaptation strategies to climate change, this paper is one of the few studies focusing on the linkages between climate change risk perceptions and adaptation responses of households in the study area. The findings of this paper could be helpful for policymakers and development practitioners in designing locally specific, actual adaptation options that shape adaptation to recent and future climate change risks.
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DOI: 10.1108/ijccsm-01-2022-0001
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