Determinants of ecosystem-based adaptation to drought in the central cattle corridor of Uganda

Abstract

Ecosystem-based Adaptation (EbA) is widely recognised as an important strategy for strengthening climate change resilience. Nevertheless, there is limited evidence on the factors that facilitate or impede EbA for ecosystem services, adaptation benefits and livelihood improvement. In this study, the determinants of EbA to drought were assessed. A mixed quantitative and qualitative cross-sectional survey among 183 farmer households was undertaken in the central cattle corridor of Uganda. The majority of the interviewed respondents were female (60.1%) who mainly carried out agro-pastoral farming (63.4%), a practice 83.2% of them learned through indigenous knowledge transfer. A multinomial logit (MNL) model based analysis was used to establish the determinants of EbA to drought. Ecosystem services, adaptation benefits and livelihood improvement were each made a base category thus yielding three MNL models. The significant (p<0.05) factors from all the three MNL models for EbA to drought were access to extension services, time (hours) spent daily on farm by farmers, land size under crop farming, type of major agricultural activity, average annual income, membership to farmer organisation and use of indigenous knowledge. These factors provide a vital knowledge base for fostering EbA policy formulation and implementation among agro-pastoral farmers to increase their resilience to drought. Climate change adaptation initiatives, institutions and governments should support education and information dissemination about EbA to farmers particularly in rangeland areas.