Anthropogenic Land Use Change and Adoption of Climate Smart Agriculture in Sub-Saharan Africa

Sarah Tione, Dorothy Nampanzira, Gloria Nalule, Olivier Kashongwe and Samson Pilanazo Katengeza
Additional contact information
Dorothy Nampanzira: Department of Livestock and Industrial Resources, College of Veterinary Medicine, Animal Resources and Biosecurity, Makerere University, Kampala P.O. Box 7062, Uganda
Gloria Nalule: Department of Livestock and Industrial Resources, College of Veterinary Medicine, Animal Resources and Biosecurity, Makerere University, Kampala P.O. Box 7062, Uganda
Olivier Kashongwe: Department of Engineering for Livestock Management, Leibniz Institute of Agricultural Engineering and Bioeconomy, 14469 Potsdam, Germany
Samson Pilanazo Katengeza: Directorate of Research and Outreach, Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources (LUANAR), Lilongwe P.O. Box 219, Malawi

Sustainability, 2022, vol. 14, issue 22, 1-29

Abstract: Compelling evidence in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) shows that Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA) has a positive impact on agricultural productivity. However, the uptake of CSA remains low, which is related to anthropogenic, or human-related, decisions about CSA and agricultural land use. This paper assesses households’ decisions to allocate agricultural land to CSA technologies across space and over time. We use the state-contingent theory, mixed methods, and mixed data sources. While agricultural land is increasing, forest land is decreasing across countries in SSA. The results show that household decisions to use CSA and the extent of agricultural land allocation to CSA remain low with a negative trend over time in SSA. Owned land and accessing land through rental markets are positively associated with allocating land to CSA technologies, particularly where land pressure is high. Regarding adaptation, experiencing rainfall shocks is significantly associated with anthropogenic land allocation to CSA technologies. The country policy assessment further supports the need to scale up CSA practices for adaptation, food security, and mitigation. Therefore, scaling up CSA in SSA will require that agriculture-related policies promote land tenure security and land markets while promoting climate-smart farming for food security, adaptation, and mitigation.

Keywords: climate change adaptation; climate-smart agriculture; land allocation; agricultural policy; Sub-Saharan Africa (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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