The Adoption and Scaling of Climate-Smart Agriculture Innovation by Smallholder Farmers in South Africa: A Review of Institutional Mechanisms, Policy Frameworks and Market Dynamics

Mary Funke Olabanji () and Munyaradzi Chitakira
Additional contact information
Mary Funke Olabanji: Department of Environmental Science, University of South Africa, Roodepoort 1709, South Africa
Munyaradzi Chitakira: Department of Environmental Science, University of South Africa, Roodepoort 1709, South Africa

World, 2025, vol. 6, issue 2, 1-31

Abstract: Climate-smart agriculture (CSA) has emerged as a critical strategy to address the intertwined challenges of climate change, food insecurity, and environmental degradation, particularly among smallholder farmers in Southern Africa. This study reviews the existing literature on the adoption and scaling of CSA innovations among smallholder farmers in South Africa, focusing specifically on the roles played by institutional mechanisms, policy frameworks, and market dynamics. The findings reveal that while CSA interventions—such as conservation agriculture, drought-tolerant crop varieties, and precision irrigation—have demonstrated positive outcomes in enhancing productivity, food and nutritional security, and climate resilience, adoption remains uneven and limited. Key barriers include insecure land tenure, insufficient extension and climate information services, limited access to credit and inputs, and fragmented institutional support. The analysis highlights the importance of secure land rights, functional farmer cooperatives, effective NGO involvement, and inclusive governance structures in facilitating CSA adoption. Further, the review critiques the implementation gaps in South Africa’s climate and agricultural policy landscape, despite the existence of comprehensive strategies like the National Climate Change Response Policy and the Agricultural Policy Action Plan. This study concludes that scaling CSA among smallholder farmers requires a holistic, multi-level approach that strengthens institutional coordination, ensures policy coherence, improves market access, and empowers local actors. Targeted financial incentives, capacity-building programs, and value chain integration are essential to transform CSA from a conceptual framework into a practical, scalable solution for sustainable agricultural development in South Africa.

Keywords: climate-smart agriculture; smallholder farmer; institutional mechanisms; policy frameworks; market dynamics; South Africa (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: G15 G17 G18 L21 L22 L25 L26 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 R51 R52 R58 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2673-4060/6/2/51/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2673-4060/6/2/51/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jworld:v:6:y:2025:i:2:p:51-:d:1637486

Access Statistics for this article

World is currently edited by Ms. Cassie Hu

More articles in World from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().