A multi-dimensional adoption approach for improved sorghum varieties in eastern Kenya: a climate change adaptation perspective

ABSTRACT

In this era of changing climatic conditions, agricultural technology developers continue to promote suitable innovations to cushion and improve resilience of smallholder farmers against adverse effects and shocks. These improved varieties contribute towards attainment of household and national food security. This paper aims to understand what influences households’ decision to adopt, speed of uptake and extent of use of improved sorghum varieties (ISVs). Data from 452 households were analysed using Double Hurdle and Duration models. Study revealed that consumption expenditure levels, income and tropical livestock unit are important determinants of three household’s adoption decisions. Access to agricultural credit, distance to administration centres and adoption intensity depicts unexpected a priori. The findings also show that households are credit constrained and use own or neighbour’s home saved seeds to expand the use of ISVs. Study concludes that the three facets of ISVs' adoption are influenced by different combination of determinants. Due to the vastness and rough terrain in Tharaka Nithi County, agricultural credit lenders should come up with effective low cost, sustainable and scalable outreach strategies. Policies targeting to derisk sorghum value chain with an aim of incentivizing financial institutions increase their lending appetite to cash-constrained smallholder farmers and agro-dealers should be implemented.

KEYWORDS:

• Agriculture
• livelihoods
• climate change
• poverty
• Eastern Africa

Acknowledgements

The authors are grateful for the financial support received from German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) through African Economic Research Consortium (AERC) that made it possible to produce and publish this research work.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 I USD was equivalent to 101.81 Kenya Shillings at the time of study.

2 Average partial effects (APEs) coefficients are presented as marginal effects values.

Additional information

Funding

The authors are grateful for the financial support received from German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) that made it possible to produce and publish this research work.

Notes on contributors

Backson Mwangi

Backson Mwangi is an expert in providing solutions in post-harvest handling and management, market and logistics for smallholder farmers. He has research interests in climate change, sustainable agricultural technology adoption and impact assessment fields.

Ibrahim Macharia

Ibrahim Macharia is a Senior Lecturer and Chair of Agricultural Economics Department. His research interests include social- economic and environmental impact of agricultural technologies, externalities of development project, the impact of climate change and agricultural sustainability.

Eric Bett

Eric Bett is a Senior Lecturer at the Department of Agricultural Economics. He has research interests in food security- agribusiness specifically agricultural markets, agricultural policy, and agricultural value chains.