TITLE:
Pastoralists’ Adaptation Strategies to Climate Change and Determinant Factors in Korahey Zone, Ethiopia
AUTHORS:
Abdo Wudad Kemal, Abduselam Abdulahi Mohammed, Latamo Lameso Lelamo
KEYWORDS:
Adaptation, Climate Change, Pastoralists, Multinomial Logit, Strategies
JOURNAL NAME:
American Journal of Climate Change,
Vol.11 No.2,
June
20,
2022
ABSTRACT: Climate change is a global phenomenon that involves the long-term fluctuation of the earth’s climate system. Specifically, climate change is acknowledged as a vital challenge to pastoralist production systems. However, limited research attention was given to exploring the determinants of climate change adaptation strategies in the southeastern part of Ethiopia. Thus, the study tried to assess the predictors of pastoralists’ climate change adaptation strategies in the Korahey zone of Ethiopia. The study was based on a survey of 215 representative pastoralist households were randomly selected from the three districts of the Korahey zone. To achieve the objective, household questionnaire surveys, key informant interviews, and focus group discussions were conducted to collect data at the household as well as the district level. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics like percentage, frequency, mean, and inferential statistics (multinomial logit model). Multinomial logit was employed to analyze the determinant factors of pastoralists’ adaptation strategies to climate change. The finding shows that household pastoralists adopt different climate change adaptation strategies in their locality; from this herd diversification (10.7%), storage of fodder (14.4%), mobility (23.7%), Livestock off-take (12%), saving scheme (8.8%) and household and herd splitting (15.3%) are the major pastoralists’ adaptation strategies to climate change in the study area. The results of the multinomial logit model show that sex, age, family size, access to climate information, access to credit services, access to extension services and livestock ownership were identified as the major determinants factors of climate change adaptation strategies in Korahey zone. The study recommended that the local government, planners and decision-makers should give awareness regarding the role of information in the pastoralists’ adoption of climate change adaptation strategies and enhance extension services to support pastoralists in their adaptation efforts.