Adaptation Strategies of Smallholder Farmers to Climate Change and Variability: Evidence from Northern Ghana

Farmers have been modifying their practices in order to deal with climate change and variability. Even though such practices have been documented in other parts of Africa, information on Ghana and particularly northern Ghana is scanty. This study examines the adaptation strategies of smallholder farmers to climate change and variability in northern Ghana. The paper is based on primary data collected through a household survey, community focus group discussions and key informant interviews in order to identify the adaptation responses of smallholder farmers in northern Ghana to climate change and variability. Several indigenous climate-related practices and technologies categorised into four strategies were identified. In addition, climate related technologies introduced by research, also categorised into four strategies, and were identified as being used by smallholder farmers in northern Ghana. The empirical results of the Friedman test indicates that timing of the onset of the rainy season which informed planting, and soil and plant health related strategies are the most important climate related strategies used by smallholder farmers in securing yield. The policy implication is that practical, timely and reliable information on the onset of the rainy season as well as region specific soil and plant health technologies should be generated and made available to smallholder farmers in northern Ghana to minimise the adverse impacts of climate change

Factors Influencing Farmer’s Participation in Agricultural Projects: The case of the Agricultural Value Chain Mentorship Project in the Northern Region of Ghana

Farmers’ participation in agricultural projects has a direct bearing on technology awareness, adoption, livelihoods, environment, nutrition, poverty, performance of the agricultural sector and the macro economy. This study therefore sought to identify factors, which delimitate farmer’s participation in agricultural projects using the case of the Agricultural Value Chain Mentorship Project. A multi-stage sampling technique was employed to collect cross sectional data from 180 farmers in the Saboba and Chereponi districts of the Northern Region of Ghana. The study adopts the binary probit model and results of the analysis indicate that number of years in school, access to production credit and agricultural extension service are factors that significantly determine farmer’s participation in agricultural projects. It appears that farmer’s interest in agricultural projects can be permanently sustained by providing them with tangible benefits such as production credit and agricultural extension services. Keywords: AVCMP, Chereponi, Farmer-Based Organization, Participation, Probit, Sabob

Factors influencing willingness to participate in multi-stakeholder platform by smallholder farmers in Northern Ghana: Implication for research and development

Innovation platforms are established to facilitate open communication and collaboration among various actors usually within a value chain to promote collective resource management. The concept of innovation platform as a strategy of entry point for operationalization, validation and dissemination of agricultural technology have received much attention in recent times among researchers in Ghana. However, very limited information exists on the factors that influence willingness of farmers' participation. The present study identified the factors influencing willingness to participate in innovation platform and also tested the level of agreement among the identified constraints associated with participation using the Probit model and Kendall's coefficient of concordance respectively. Data for the study was collected from a cross sectional primary observations of 250 smallholder rice farmers in northern Ghana. The study observes, inter alia, that age of household head, household size and household income significantly influenced willingness to participate on the platform. The Kendall's coefficient of concordance value indicated that there was 21 percent agreement between the rankings of the participation constraints faced by the sampled rice farmers. Income-earning and younger household heads must be targeted coupled with situation of the platforms close to smallholder farmers to encourage participation

Climate-smart cowpea adoption and welfare effects of comprehensive agricultural training programs

Agricultural training programs remain one of the primary mechanisms for disseminating modern and climate-smart technologies with the aim to improve the welfare outcomes of smallholder farmers. With persistent low agricultural productivity in Sub Saharan Africa (SSA), the content, effectiveness, and mode of delivery of training programs remain a debate. In this paper, we examine the adoption, productivity, and income effects of participating in a novel comprehensive agricultural training program (CATP) involving cowpea farmers in northern Ghana by using the endogenous switching regression (ESR) model. The CATP requires farmers to complete a set of modules on good agronomic practices to gain informal certification. The results indicate that participating in the CATP increases the adoption of climate-smart cowpea varieties, productivity, and cowpea income by 75, 15, and 24% points, respectively, compared to their mean levels. These positive welfare effects of participating in the CATPs confirm the need to increase capacity-enhancing activities in agricultural development projects, and design mechanisms to eliminate barriers to participation among rural farm households

The impact of climate change on crop production in Ghana: A Structural Ricardian analysis

We apply a Structural Ricardian Model (SRM) to farm-level data from Ghana in order to estimate the impact of climate change on crop production. The SRM explicitly incorporates changes in farmers’ crop selection in response to variation in climate, a feature lacking in many existing models of climate change response in Africa. Two other novel features of our model are an estimate of the response of agricultural profits to differences in land tenure, and a comprehensive investigation of the appropriate functional form with which to model farmers’ responses. This final feature turns out to be important, since estimates of the effect of climate change turn out to be sensitive to the choice of functional form

Application of Livelihood Vulnerability Index in Assessing Vulnerability to Climate Change and Variability in Northern Ghana

Climate change is impacting on climate dependent activities such as agriculture in Africa and Ghana. The extent of the impact of climate change in agriculture depends on the level of vulnerability or exposure of farmers to these impacts. This study estimates the level of vulnerability of smallholder farmers to climate change and variability in northern Ghana using the Livelihood Vulnerability Index highlighting access to, and utilization of water resources. The approach estimates vulnerabilities in terms of exposure, sensitivity and adaptive capacity. The data is based on a survey of 320 farm households, complemented with secondary data on rainfall and temperature. Results of the study shows that Northern Region is the most exposed region to climate change and variability. Upper West Region is the most sensitive to climate change and variability especially with regards to water stress; and the Upper East Region has the least adaptive capacity. Northern Region is the most vulnerable in terms of the overall livelihood vulnerability index, followed by the Upper East and Upper West regions. Key Words: Livelihood, Vulnerability, Climate change, Climate variability, Northern Ghan

Performance and Constraints of Small Scale Enterprises in the Accra Metropolitan Area of Ghana

Small Scale Enterprises play a crucial role in the development of entrepreneurial capabilities and indigenous technology which generate employment. Promotion of such enterprises in developing economies like Ghana is of paramount importance as it brings about a great distribution of benefits. The study seeks to quantify the determinants of the factors influencing performance of small scale enterprises in Accra Metropolitan Area of Ghana. Kendall’s coefficient of concordance was used to test the agreement between the ranked constraints of the small scale enterprises in relation to performance. The study uses structured questionnaire to interview 150 small scale entrepreneurs in Accra Metropolitan Area (AMA). Data collected was analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) and Econometric views (E-views). Results of the analysis indicate that age of entrepreneur is the most influential determinant of performance of small scale enterprises. The Kendall’s coefficient of concordance indicates that there is 91 percent agreement between the respondents in the ranking of the constraints in relation to performance. High cost of borrowing is the most important constraint faced by the small scale entrepreneurs. Based on the results, we recommend a flexible policy geared towards helping young entrepreneurs, as well as reducing the high interest charges on loans. Key words: Performance, Constraint, Small Scale Enterprise, Accra Metropolitan Area, Ghan

Smallholder farmers’ perceptions and strategies for adaptation to climate change in Brong Ahafo and Upper West Regions of Ghana

With data collected from 750 farming households using survey questionnaire and 25 Focus Group Discussions (FGD), this report documents farmers’ perception of climate change and adaptation strategies in the Brong Ahafo and Upper West regions of Ghana. Results showed that DTM varieties are a viable strategy for adaptation to climate change. The use of drought tolerant or early maturing varieties ranked among the top three adaptation strategies used by farmers to combat risks from climate change in their production activities. Other strategies include growing different crops or engaging in mixed cropping and changing planting dates. The key determinant of DTM adoption in Brong Ahafo is occurrence of drought shock. In Upper West, farmers’ age, awareness about climate change, distance from input markets, access to credit, and training on DT varieties affect the probability of adoption of DTM. Widespread adoption of DTM has the potential of minimising farm-level impacts of climate change in Ghana

Transforming food environments to deliver healthy diet options: Economic rationale and policy drivers

The second Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) envisions comprehensive global food security and improved nutrition by 2030. This is a major challenge, with persisting undernutrition and micronutrient deficiencies in multiple regions, and the increase in excessive consumption of macronutrients contributing to overweight and obesity, heart disease, and Type 2 diabetes even in low- and middle-income countries. While improvements are needed throughout current food systems, the food retail environment (FRE) in developing countries remains an underexplored link between production systems and consumers in food and nutrition security programs. This study examines the economic rationale of actors in the food retail environment and suggests policy options to nudge the food environment to deliver a healthier basket of foods. The policy options are classified into personal changes, private sector actions, and public sector initiatives. We argue that for a comprehensive transformation of the food retail environment to deliver healthier food options, private, public sector initiatives, and consumer awareness all require urgent action

Antimicrobial resistance among migrants in Europe: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND: Rates of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) are rising globally and there is concern that increased migration is contributing to the burden of antibiotic resistance in Europe. However, the effect of migration on the burden of AMR in Europe has not yet been comprehensively examined. Therefore, we did a systematic review and meta-analysis to identify and synthesise data for AMR carriage or infection in migrants to Europe to examine differences in patterns of AMR across migrant groups and in different settings. METHODS: For this systematic review and meta-analysis, we searched MEDLINE, Embase, PubMed, and Scopus with no language restrictions from Jan 1, 2000, to Jan 18, 2017, for primary data from observational studies reporting antibacterial resistance in common bacterial pathogens among migrants to 21 European Union-15 and European Economic Area countries. To be eligible for inclusion, studies had to report data on carriage or infection with laboratory-confirmed antibiotic-resistant organisms in migrant populations. We extracted data from eligible studies and assessed quality using piloted, standardised forms. We did not examine drug resistance in tuberculosis and excluded articles solely reporting on this parameter. We also excluded articles in which migrant status was determined by ethnicity, country of birth of participants' parents, or was not defined, and articles in which data were not disaggregated by migrant status. Outcomes were carriage of or infection with antibiotic-resistant organisms. We used random-effects models to calculate the pooled prevalence of each outcome. The study protocol is registered with PROSPERO, number CRD42016043681. FINDINGS: We identified 2274 articles, of which 23 observational studies reporting on antibiotic resistance in 2319 migrants were included. The pooled prevalence of any AMR carriage or AMR infection in migrants was 25·4% (95% CI 19·1-31·8; I2 =98%), including meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (7·8%, 4·8-10·7; I2 =92%) and antibiotic-resistant Gram-negative bacteria (27·2%, 17·6-36·8; I2 =94%). The pooled prevalence of any AMR carriage or infection was higher in refugees and asylum seekers (33·0%, 18·3-47·6; I2 =98%) than in other migrant groups (6·6%, 1·8-11·3; I2 =92%). The pooled prevalence of antibiotic-resistant organisms was slightly higher in high-migrant community settings (33·1%, 11·1-55·1; I2 =96%) than in migrants in hospitals (24·3%, 16·1-32·6; I2 =98%). We did not find evidence of high rates of transmission of AMR from migrant to host populations. INTERPRETATION: Migrants are exposed to conditions favouring the emergence of drug resistance during transit and in host countries in Europe. Increased antibiotic resistance among refugees and asylum seekers and in high-migrant community settings (such as refugee camps and detention facilities) highlights the need for improved living conditions, access to health care, and initiatives to facilitate detection of and appropriate high-quality treatment for antibiotic-resistant infections during transit and in host countries. Protocols for the prevention and control of infection and for antibiotic surveillance need to be integrated in all aspects of health care, which should be accessible for all migrant groups, and should target determinants of AMR before, during, and after migration. FUNDING: UK National Institute for Health Research Imperial Biomedical Research Centre, Imperial College Healthcare Charity, the Wellcome Trust, and UK National Institute for Health Research Health Protection Research Unit in Healthcare-associated Infections and Antimictobial Resistance at Imperial College London