EVALUATION OF WILLINGNESS TO ACCEPT AND ADOPT CLEAN DEVELOPMENT MECHANISM PROJECTS AMONG SMALLSCALE FARMERS IN NJORO DISTRICT, KENYA

Carbon markets are developing world wide with the major aim of environmental protection and poverty alleviation in developing countries. Some carbon sequestration projects have been started in Kenya though it is still not yet a vibrant investment in spite of the available suitable biophysical land. Njoro district has no such project regardless of being affected by deforestation. One inevitable result has been the unpredictable rainfall pattern constituting overall climate change, increased surface run off, the low water levels in river Njoro, loss of biodiversity and the increased poverty in the region. It is still not clear if such projects are to be initiated, the smallscale farmers would be willing to accept and adopt them. There was need therefore, to assess the willingness of small scale farmers to accept and adopt carbon trade tree project in order to understand farmer’s decision making process. The study used multi-stage sampling procedure to select 150 small-scale farmers in Njoro district. Both primary and secondary data sources collected using observations and interviews with the help of a semi-structured questionnaire. Data analysis was done using descriptive statistics, ordinal logit model and the double hurdle model using STATA computer programs. The results indicated that 29% of the farmers practiced tree planting/agro-forestry as the voluntary CDM practice in the study area. On the level of awareness the result indicates that 58% of the farmers were not aware of the project, 23% were aware and correct and 19% of the farmers were aware but wrong signifying low levels of awareness of the CDM project among farmers. Gender, household size, farm debt, attitude towards risk, farm size, land tenure, availability of voluntary CDM and perception of the technology were found to influence the willingness to accept the project. Further, age, extension contacts, attitude towards risk, land tenure and perception towards the technology influenced on the extent the farmer is willing to adopt. The study therefore, recommends policy interventions in increasing awareness, improved training through extension services on agro-environmental programmes, formation of agro-environmental self help groups by farmers and creation of strategies that would improve socio-economic conditions of smallholder farmers in Kenya. Through this, adoption of carbon tree trade would be successful consequently increasing carbon sinks and increased smallholder farm income hence poverty reduction and sustainable development.Environmental Economics and Policy, Farm Management,

Usage of Agricultural Intensification Practices by Smallholder Farmers in Kenyan Rapidly Developing Dry Areas

Developing countries, Kenya included are mostly affected by food problems and poverty as a result of high dependence on agriculture. In Kenya agriculture contributes to 27.3% of the Gross Domestic Product. Agriculture in Kenya is dominated by smallholder farmers, whose production is hampered by climate variability, declining land sizes and low agricultural technologies. Agricultural intensification is aimed at solving the problem of low agricultural productivity and poverty through increasing farm output per unit land area. Makueni and Nyando Sub-County were considered as hotspots of climate change by CCAFS. A total of 320 households were sampled from the two sub-counties. From the scope farmers were engaged in 16 agricultural intensification practices, some practices were substitutes others complementary so they were highly correlated. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was then used to group them into clusters called principal components. PCA helped in creating levels of agricultural intensifications. From the results, the number of components (Levels of agricultural intensification) of users was ranging from one to five. That is from low users of strategy 1, partial users of 2, 3 and 4 to full users of 5. The result revealed that 56% of farmers used 5 sets of strategies while 31%, 8%, 3% and 1% of farmers’ used 4, 3, 2 and 1 levels of agricultural intensification practices respectively. The results implied that there was need for smallholder farmers to increase agricultural intensification which leads to improved smallholder farmers livelihood outcomes and helps in building their resilience to harsh climatic conditions. Keywords: Agricultural intensification practices, Kenya, Principal Component Analysis, Smallholder farmer DOI: 10.7176/JESD/10-18-04 Publication date:September 30th 201

Smallholder Farmers’ Willingness to Pay for Insurance Against Climate Variability Effects in Arid Land Areas of Kenya

The impacts of climate variability on societies around the world are increasingly evident. Kenya is one of the most vulnerable countries and economic sectors and livelihoods are already frequently experiencing the manifestations of the problem. Over the years, a range of risk management strategies has been used to reduce, or to assist farmers to absorb, some of these impact. Since insurance is potentially an important instrument to transfer part of the risk, this study assesses small holder farmers willingness to pay for selected crop insurance and examine factors that affect the maximum farmers are willing to pay for the selected crop insurance as a response to climate variability in Kenya. The data was collected from 392 sample households from Laikipia County in Kenya using close ended value elicitation format followed by open ended follow up questions. The study uses a Double bounded dichotomous choice model for data analysis. The mean willingness to pay values are found to be 58552.22 and 55923.38 KES per hectare with and without covariates respectively. The estimated willingness to pay for the study area was found to be KES 63930.79 per year.  Occupation of household head and access to weather information had a positive effect on willingness to pay for crop insurance while access to extension services had a negative effect. Therefore, the study recommends provision of meteorological reports and alerts to farmers in understandable forms. There is a need for investment in the provision of up to date, relevant demand-driven extension services that provide localized response solutions depending on the agro ecological zone. Keywords: Willingness to pay double bounded dichotomous choice, insurance, climate variability and agro-pastoralism

Milk dispensing machines in Kenya’s dairy industry: trends and scenario analysis

This study analyses trends in the development of ATM milk retailing in Kenya,based on data collected in six counties with high ATM density. Trends include growth in the ATM businesses and related support services, consumer perceptions and demand and milk quality and safety issues in this milk market segment. Building on the trends analysis, the second part of the study explores scenarios that are likely to affect further growth of milk ATMs. The evidence is intended to inform the necessary policy and regulatory framework that can support quality-driven investments in this growing retail market segment

Training and field report: Identifying and measuring the effectiveness of different combination of socio-technical innovation bundles on empowerment and resilience in Kenya

The study was conducted by the Harnessing Gender and Social Equality for Resilience in Agrifood Systems (HER+) initiative in collaboration with UU in the context of the UU learning sites and HER+ learning labs. The UU initiative aims to support climate-resilient agriculture and livelihoods in 12 countries in East and Southern Africa by helping millions of smallholders intensify, diversify and reduce the risks in maizebased farming through improved extension services, small and medium enterprise development, supporting governance frameworks and increased investment with a gender and social inclusion lens. While the HER+ initiative Work Package 2 (WP2) of HER+, i.e., EMPOWER: worked with participants in the UU sites to identify and prioritize socio-technical bundled innovations for women’s empowerment and resilience. It provided a space to discuss missing social innovations that often constraint access, control and use of technology often affected by gender and other intersecting elements such as age, ethnicity, education and wealth that limit access to resources, decision-making processes, services, or information. These restrictive norms, policy and hindering environments often limit the uptake and empowerment of women as partners in designing, promoting, and using climate-smart solutions. WP2 contributes to filling the gap by providing evidence about the reasons for women’s limited uptake of innovations and developing decision-support tools to guide the design and implementation of STIBs, particularly paying attention to gender and social inclusion

EVALUATION OF WILLINGNESS TO ACCEPT AND ADOPT CLEAN DEVELOPMENT MECHANISM PROJECTS AMONG SMALLSCALE FARMERS IN NJORO DISTRICT, KENYA

Carbon markets are developing world wide with the major aim of environmental protection and poverty alleviation in developing countries. Some carbon sequestration projects have been started in Kenya though it is still not yet a vibrant investment in spite of the available suitable biophysical land. Njoro district has no such project regardless of being affected by deforestation. One inevitable result has been the unpredictable rainfall pattern constituting overall climate change, increased surface run off, the low water levels in river Njoro, loss of biodiversity and the increased poverty in the region. It is still not clear if such projects are to be initiated, the smallscale farmers would be willing to accept and adopt them. There was need therefore, to assess the willingness of small scale farmers to accept and adopt carbon trade tree project in order to understand farmer’s decision making process. The study used multi-stage sampling procedure to select 150 small-scale farmers in Njoro district. Both primary and secondary data sources collected using observations and interviews with the help of a semi-structured questionnaire. Data analysis was done using descriptive statistics, ordinal logit model and the double hurdle model using STATA computer programs. The results indicated that 29% of the farmers practiced tree planting/agro-forestry as the voluntary CDM practice in the study area. On the level of awareness the result indicates that 58% of the farmers were not aware of the project, 23% were aware and correct and 19% of the farmers were aware but wrong signifying low levels of awareness of the CDM project among farmers. Gender, household size, farm debt, attitude towards risk, farm size, land tenure, availability of voluntary CDM and perception of the technology were found to influence the willingness to accept the project. Further, age, extension contacts, attitude towards risk, land tenure and perception towards the technology influenced on the extent the farmer is willing to adopt. The study therefore, recommends policy interventions in increasing awareness, improved training through extension services on agro-environmental programmes, formation of agro-environmental self help groups by farmers and creation of strategies that would improve socio-economic conditions of smallholder farmers in Kenya. Through this, adoption of carbon tree trade would be successful consequently increasing carbon sinks and increased smallholder farm income hence poverty reduction and sustainable development

Dynamics of Gender Preferences for Farm Investment Strategies in Rwanda: A Best-worst Scaling Experiment

Gender gaps affect how women and men access, participate and benefit from the adoption of various farm investment strategies, environmental conservation and sustainable development. Production, conservation, and livelihood strategies are motivated by land and household decision-making dynamics. Understanding gender preference dynamics on investment fills a gap in the gendered division of labor, market participation and agricultural transformation.  The study adopted a household survey on 653 male and female respondents in the Burera, Gakenke and Musanze districts of Northern Rwanda. Analysis revealed three farm investment strategies in relation to the relative importance for the agricultural transformation process: the best (>85%), intermediate (between 60% and 85%), and low (<60%). Male and females had varied preferences (positive or negative) for the strategies. Females preferred livelihood strategies that combined on-farm and off-farm sources. The study recommends the adoption of diversified production and livelihood strategies to improve farm investment and market access. Land systems should consider youth inclusion as a dynamic factor in household decision making, women empowerment and agricultural transformation

Analysis of risk attitudes and social capital in pineapple marketing: The case of small-scale farmers in Luwero district, Uganda

Development partners are promoting and encouraging small-scale farmers to venture into horticultural farming as a development tool to enhance their livelihoods. While previous empirical studies provide an indication of how small-scale farmers’ choose to participate in markets, the role of farmer risk attitudes and social capital in the choice of low or high value market outlets has hardly been analyzed. This study therefore examined the producers’ risk attitudes and social capital dimensions that may explain the differences in the choice of market outlets. Data were collected from 272 households in four sub-counties in Luwero district in central Ugnada using multi-stage sampling during the period of March through May 2016. The empirical analysis in this study was based on primary data collected in face to face interviews using semi structured questionnaires. Data analysis was done using descriptive statistics and Multinomial Logit regression model. Results indicate that gender, marketing under contract, risk attitudes and trust significantly influenced choice of export market at the one per cent level while education level, farm size, market distance and density of membership influenced it at the five per cent level. Trust, frequency of attending group meetings and density of membership influenced market decision outlet choices and production information flow in market transaction associations which ensure that benefits of social capital are reaped by farmers. Findings showed that choosing high value markets was associated with farmers being risk seekers and having higher trust level for transaction partners. The implication of these findings is that development strategies that target commercialization of small-scale agriculture through high value market access should pay attention to farmers’ risk perceptions and trust. The study therefore recommends that to support farmers become more risk takers and increase trust for transaction partners, there is need to create awareness among farmers about how to guard against market risks and benefits of high value market access. This can be achieved by encouraging farmers reduce agricultural risks by building up self-insurance strategies through participation in off-farm activities. Furthermore, social capital stakeholders should encourage development of trust between farmers and transaction partners. This can be through establishing product price floor and ceiling which would reduce price information asymmetry between farmers and traders

Socio-Economic Drivers of Fish Species Consumption Preferences in Kenya’s Urban Informal Food System

In an effort to contribute to resilient food and nutritional security in urban slums, a food system approach was applied to understand the key socio-economic factors driving fish species consumption in Kibera, the largest informal settlement in Africa located in Nairobi, Kenya. Data were collected from 385 randomly selected households using a structured questionnaire. A multivariate probit model was applied to estimate the relationship between the variables in order to determine the socio-economic drivers of preferences for different fish species. The results indicated that Lake Victoria sardine (Rastrineobola argentea) had the highest preference (73%) among the respondents, followed by Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) (70%) and Nile perch (Lates niloticus) (23%), respectively, with other fish species at 12%, including African catfish, marbled lungfish, common carp, fulu and tuna (Clarias gariepinus, Protopterus aethiopicus, Cyprinus carpio, Haplochromine cichlids and Thunnus sp., respectively). Large household size showed an increase in preference for the Lake Victoria sardine, while higher income influenced preference for Nile tilapia and Nile perch positively, implying that when more income is available, Nile tilapia is the preferred fish over other fish species. Increased fish prices positively influenced preference for Nile tilapia, which is explained by the willingness to pay extra for quality and origin, for instance, to avoid the cheaply cultivated Chinese fish. In the case of the Lake Victoria sardine, lower prices positively affected the preferences. Religious and cultural practices and beliefs influenced preference for species and consumption of fish. Residents who migrated from western Kenya had a higher preference for the Lake Victoria sardine, while residents born and raised in Kibera had a higher preference for Nile tilapia. Neighbourhood effects reduced the preference for consuming Nile perch. These findings provide insights into future market opportunities for specific target groups. For instance, given that small-sized fish like the Lake Victoria sardine is highly demanded, in order to increase resiliency in food and nutrition security, small-sized cheap Nile tilapia will have a large potential in the future, with ever higher demand specifically from the residents born and raised in Kibera