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  • Does climate information source matter in smallholder farmers' climate resilience? Comparative insights from Malawi and Ghana
Title: Does climate information source matter in smallholder farmers' climate resilience? Comparative insights from Malawi and Ghana
Due to increasing climate variability and change, the need for more accessible, timely, and reliable climate information has risen, particularly in African rain-fed smallholder farming communities. Yet, studies on the role of information sources in climate resilience are limited. Given the plurality of climate information sources, it is uncertain which medium offers better chances to build resilience against the changing climate. To fill this gap, we employed quantitative survey data from smallholder agricultural households in the Mzimba District in Malawi (n =1090) and the Upper West Region of Ghana (n =1100). Our findings reveal that in Malawi, households whose primary source of climate information was the mass media (OR =2.37; p ≤ 0.001) and external organizations (government, private sector, and nonprofit sector) (OR =2.11; p ≤0.001) were over two times more likely to rate their resilience as good compared to those who relied primarily on self-experience. While in Ghana, interpersonal sources (other farmers, friends/ relatives, special activities by the community) significantly increased a household’s odds (OR = 3.46; p ≤0.001) of reporting good resilience, while external sources reduced farmers’ likelihood of reporting climate resilience (OR =0.06; p ≤0.001) compared to those who relied primarily on self-experience. Farmers in Malawi who practiced intercropping were also more likely to rate their resilience as good than those engaged in monocropping. The findings suggest that the relevance of information sources on climate change resilience is place-specific and that some sources may impede resilience-building if contextual factors are sidelined. This finding reaffirms the need for context-specific policies due to the heterogeneity of agrarian communities across Africa.  more » « less
Award ID(s):
1852587
PAR ID:
10511056
Author(s) / Creator(s):
; ; ; ; ;
Date Published:
Journal Name:
Environmental Development
Volume:
48
Issue:
C
ISSN:
2211-4645
Page Range / eLocation ID:
100931
Subject(s) / Keyword(s):
Climate information Climate change Resilience Smallholder farmers Ghana Malawi
Format(s):
Medium: X
Sponsoring Org:
National Science Foundation
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