IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/agecon/v50y2019i1p39-49.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Land fragmentation, climate change adaptation, and food security in the Gamo Highlands of Ethiopia

Author

Listed:
  • Tesfaye C. Cholo
  • Luuk Fleskens
  • Diana Sietz
  • Jack Peerlings

Abstract

Household food security among smallholder farmers is sensitive to a variable and changing climate, requiring farmers in the Gamo Highlands of Ethiopia to adopt new land management practices to improve food security. Agricultural land in the Gamo Highlands is highly fragmented. The extent to which land fragmentation (LF) moderates the food security effects of sustainable land management (SLM) practices is unknown. This study used probit and Poisson models to explain this relationship. The study found that food insecurity was severe during the food shortfall season. LF provides more potential opportunities for improving food security than challenges. Furthermore, SLM practices had both positive and negative effects on food security and their effects were conditioned by the magnitude of LF. Reducing severe LF through the assembly of small parcels into larger heterogeneous plot clusters could enhance food security by exploiting synergies between adaptation practices and LF.

Suggested Citation

  • Tesfaye C. Cholo & Luuk Fleskens & Diana Sietz & Jack Peerlings, 2019. "Land fragmentation, climate change adaptation, and food security in the Gamo Highlands of Ethiopia," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 50(1), pages 39-49, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:agecon:v:50:y:2019:i:1:p:39-49
    DOI: 10.1111/agec.12464
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/agec.12464
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/agec.12464?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Bizimana, Claude & Nieuwoudt, W. Lieb & Ferrer, Stuart R.D., 2004. "Farm size, land fragmentation and economic efficiency in southern Rwanda," Agrekon, Agricultural Economics Association of South Africa (AEASA), vol. 43(2), pages 1-19, June.
    2. Blarel, Benoit, et al, 1992. "The Economics of Farm Fragmentation: Evidence from Ghana and Rwanda," The World Bank Economic Review, World Bank, vol. 6(2), pages 233-254, May.
    3. Garrett, James L. & Ruel, Marie T., 1999. "Are determinants of rural and urban food security and nutritional status different?," FCND discussion papers 65, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    4. Andrew Dorward & Nigel Poole & Jamie Morrison & Jonathan Kydd & Ian Urey, 2003. "Markets, Institutions and Technology: Missing Links in Livelihoods Analysis," Development Policy Review, Overseas Development Institute, vol. 21, pages 319-332, May.
    5. Kawasaki, Kentaro, 2010. "The costs and benefits of land fragmentation of rice farms in Japan," Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society, vol. 54(4), pages 1-18.
    6. Salvatore Di Falco & Marcella Veronesi & Mahmud Yesuf, 2011. "Does Adaptation to Climate Change Provide Food Security? A Micro-Perspective from Ethiopia," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 93(3), pages 825-842.
    7. Deininger, Klaus & Jin, Songqing, 2006. "Tenure security and land-related investment: Evidence from Ethiopia," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 50(5), pages 1245-1277, July.
    8. Shively, Gerald E., 1999. "Risks and returns from soil conservation: evidence from low-income farms in the Philippines," Agricultural Economics, Blackwell, vol. 21(1), pages 53-67, August.
    9. Maxwell, Daniel G., 1996. "Measuring food insecurity: the frequency and severity of "coping strategies"," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 21(3), pages 291-303, July.
    10. Kentaro Kawasaki, 2010. "The costs and benefits of land fragmentation of rice farms in Japan ," Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society, vol. 54(4), pages 509-526, October.
    11. CÈline Dutilly-Diane & Elisabeth Sadoulet & Alain de Janvry, 2003. "Household Behaviour under Market Failures: How Natural Resource Management in Agriculture Promotes Livestock Production in the Sahel," Journal of African Economies, Centre for the Study of African Economies, vol. 12(3), pages 343-370, September.
    12. Kassie, Menale & Ndiritu, Simon Wagura & Shiferaw, Bekele A., 2012. "Determinants of Food Security in Kenya, a Gender Perspective," 86th Annual Conference, April 16-18, 2012, Warwick University, Coventry, UK 135124, Agricultural Economics Society.
    13. Salvatore Di Falco & Marcella Veronesi, 2014. "Managing Environmental Risk in Presence of Climate Change: The Role of Adaptation in the Nile Basin of Ethiopia," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 57(4), pages 553-577, April.
    14. Mendelsohn, Robert & Dinar, Ariel & Williams, Larry, 2006. "The distributional impact of climate change on rich and poor countries," Environment and Development Economics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 11(2), pages 159-178, April.
    15. Daniel Maxwell & Keith Wiebe, 1999. "Land Tenure and Food Security: Exploring Dynamic Linkages," Development and Change, International Institute of Social Studies, vol. 30(4), pages 825-849, October.
    16. Richard Williams, 2012. "Using the margins command to estimate and interpret adjusted predictions and marginal effects," Stata Journal, StataCorp LP, vol. 12(2), pages 308-331, June.
    17. Salvatore Falco & Marcella Veronesi, 2018. "Managing Environmental Risk in Presence of Climate Change: The Role of Adaptation in the Nile Basin of Ethiopia," Natural Resource Management and Policy, in: Leslie Lipper & Nancy McCarthy & David Zilberman & Solomon Asfaw & Giacomo Branca (ed.), Climate Smart Agriculture, pages 497-526, Springer.
    18. Dutilly-Diane, Celine & Sadoulet, Elisabeth & de Janvry, Alain, 2003. "Household Behavior Under Market Failures: How Natural Resource Management in Agriculture Promotes Livestock Production in the Sahel," Department of Agricultural & Resource Economics, UC Berkeley, Working Paper Series qt3cw1v239, Department of Agricultural & Resource Economics, UC Berkeley.
    19. Baorong Guo, 2011. "Household Assets and Food Security: Evidence from the Survey of Program Dynamics," Journal of Family and Economic Issues, Springer, vol. 32(1), pages 98-110, March.
    20. Gerald E. Shively, 1999. "Risks and returns from soil conservation: evidence from low‐income farms in the Philippines," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 21(1), pages 53-67, August.
    21. Abera Demeke & Alwin Keil & Manfred Zeller, 2011. "Using panel data to estimate the effect of rainfall shocks on smallholders food security and vulnerability in rural Ethiopia," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 108(1), pages 185-206, September.
    22. Julius Kotir, 2011. "Climate change and variability in Sub-Saharan Africa: a review of current and future trends and impacts on agriculture and food security," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 13(3), pages 587-605, June.
    23. Holden, Stein & Shiferaw, Bekele, 2004. "Land degradation, drought and food security in a less-favoured area in the Ethiopian highlands: a bio-economic model with market imperfections," Agricultural Economics, Blackwell, vol. 30(1), pages 31-49, January.
    24. Garrett, James L. & Ruel, Marie T., 1999. "Are Determinants of Rural and Urban Food Security and Nutritional Status Different? Some Insights from Mozambique," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 27(11), pages 1955-1975, November.
    25. Teklewold, Hailemariam & Kassie, Menale & Shiferaw, Bekele & Köhlin, Gunnar, 2013. "Cropping system diversification, conservation tillage and modern seed adoption in Ethiopia: Impacts on household income, agrochemical use and demand for labor," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 93(C), pages 85-93.
    26. Thomas Berger & Christian Troost & Tesfamicheal Wossen & Evgeny Latynskiy & Kindie Tesfaye & Sika Gbegbelegbe, 2017. "Can smallholder farmers adapt to climate variability, and how effective are policy interventions? Agent-based simulation results for Ethiopia," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 48(6), pages 693-706, November.
    27. Croppenstedt, Andre & Muller, Christophe, 2000. "The Impact of Farmers' Health and Nutritional Status on Their Productivity and Efficiency: Evidence from Ethiopia," Economic Development and Cultural Change, University of Chicago Press, vol. 48(3), pages 475-502, April.
    28. Shiferaw T. Feleke & Richard L. Kilmer & Christina H. Gladwin, 2005. "Determinants of food security in Southern Ethiopia at the household level," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 33(3), pages 351-363, November.
    29. Eucabeth Majiwa & Boon L. Lee & Clevo Wilson, 2018. "Increasing agricultural productivity while reducing greenhouse gas emissions in sub†Saharan Africa: myth or reality?," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 49(2), pages 183-192, March.
    30. Temesgen Tadesse Deressa & Rashid M. Hassan, 2009. "Economic Impact of Climate Change on Crop Production in Ethiopia: Evidence from Cross-section Measures," Journal of African Economies, Centre for the Study of African Economies, vol. 18(4), pages 529-554, August.
    31. Salvatore Di Falco, 2014. "Adaptation to climate change in Sub-Saharan agriculture: assessing the evidence and rethinking the drivers," European Review of Agricultural Economics, Oxford University Press and the European Agricultural and Applied Economics Publications Foundation, vol. 41(3), pages 405-430.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Ntihinyurwa, Pierre Damien & de Vries, Walter Timo, 2021. "Farmland fragmentation concourse: Analysis of scenarios and research gaps," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 100(C).
    2. Erwin Knippenberg & Dean Jolliffe & John Hoddinott, 2020. "Land Fragmentation and Food Insecurity in Ethiopia," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 102(5), pages 1557-1577, October.
    3. Yu, Peiheng & Fennell, Shailaja & Chen, Yiyun & Liu, Hui & Xu, Lu & Pan, Jiawei & Bai, Shaoyun & Gu, Shixiang, 2022. "Positive impacts of farmland fragmentation on agricultural production efficiency in Qilu Lake watershed: Implications for appropriate scale management," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 117(C).
    4. Sietz, Diana & Conradt, Tobias & Krysanova, Valentina & Hattermann, Fred F. & Wechsung, Frank, 2021. "The Crop Generator: Implementing crop rotations to effectively advance eco-hydrological modelling," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 193(C).
    5. Georgina Milne & Andrew William Byrne & Emma Campbell & Jordon Graham & John McGrath & Raymond Kirke & Wilma McMaster & Jesko Zimmermann & Adewale Henry Adenuga, 2022. "Quantifying Land Fragmentation in Northern Irish Cattle Enterprises," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(3), pages 1-16, March.
    6. Nguyen Thai Phan & Ji-Yong Lee & Nguyen Duc Kien, 2022. "The Impact of Land Fragmentation in Rice Production on Household Food Insecurity in Vietnam," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(18), pages 1-12, September.
    7. Pierre Damien Ntihinyurwa & Walter Timo de Vries, 2021. "Farmland Fragmentation, Farmland Consolidation and Food Security: Relationships, Research Lapses and Future Perspectives," Land, MDPI, vol. 10(2), pages 1-39, January.
    8. Tsegaye Ginbo, 2022. "Heterogeneous impacts of climate change on crop yields across altitudes in Ethiopia," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 170(1), pages 1-21, January.
    9. Tuyen Quang Tran & Huong Van Vu, 2021. "The impact of land fragmentation on food security in the North Central Coast, Vietnam," Asia and the Pacific Policy Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 8(2), pages 327-345, May.
    10. Ndip, Francis Ebai & Molua, Ernest L. & Mvodo, Meyo-Elise Stephanie & Nkendah, Robert & Djomo Choumbou, Raoul Fani & Tabetando, Rayner & Akem, Nina Fabinin, 2023. "Farmland Fragmentation, crop diversification and incomes in Cameroon, a Congo Basin country," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 130(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Tesfaye C. Cholo & Jack Peerlings & Luuk Fleskens, 2020. "Land Fragmentation, Technical Efficiency, and Adaptation to Climate Change by Farmers in the Gamo Highlands of Ethiopia," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(24), pages 1-15, December.
    2. Tesfaye C. Cholo & Luuk Fleskens & Diana Sietz & Jack Peerlings, 2018. "Is Land Fragmentation Facilitating or Obstructing Adoption of Climate Adaptation Measures in Ethiopia?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(7), pages 1-14, June.
    3. Fissha Asmare & Jūratė Jaraitė & Andrius Kažukauskas, 2022. "Climate change adaptation and productive efficiency of subsistence farming: A bias‐corrected panel data stochastic frontier approach," Journal of Agricultural Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 73(3), pages 739-760, September.
    4. Jia, Lili, 2012. "Land fragmentation and off-farm labor supply in China," Studies on the Agricultural and Food Sector in Transition Economies, Leibniz Institute of Agricultural Development in Transition Economies (IAMO), volume 66, number 66.
    5. Mikémina, Pilo & Gerber, Nicolas & Wünscher, Tobias, 2018. "Impacts of Adaptation to Climate Change on farmers’ income in the Savana Region of Togo," Discussion Papers 271152, University of Bonn, Center for Development Research (ZEF).
    6. Gebremariam, Gebrelibanos & Tesfaye, Wondimagegn, 2018. "The heterogeneous effect of shocks on agricultural innovations adoption: Microeconometric evidence from rural Ethiopia," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 74(C), pages 154-161.
    7. Salvatore Falco & Marcella Veronesi, 2018. "Managing Environmental Risk in Presence of Climate Change: The Role of Adaptation in the Nile Basin of Ethiopia," Natural Resource Management and Policy, in: Leslie Lipper & Nancy McCarthy & David Zilberman & Solomon Asfaw & Giacomo Branca (ed.), Climate Smart Agriculture, pages 497-526, Springer.
    8. Mauro Vigani & Jonas Kathage, 2019. "To Risk or Not to Risk? Risk Management and Farm Productivity," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 101(5), pages 1432-1454, October.
    9. Yu, Peiheng & Fennell, Shailaja & Chen, Yiyun & Liu, Hui & Xu, Lu & Pan, Jiawei & Bai, Shaoyun & Gu, Shixiang, 2022. "Positive impacts of farmland fragmentation on agricultural production efficiency in Qilu Lake watershed: Implications for appropriate scale management," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 117(C).
    10. Jarmila LAZIKOVA & Lubica RUMANOVSKA & Ivan TAKAC & Zuzana LAZIKOVA, 2017. "Land fragmentation and efforts to prevent it in Slovak legislation," Agricultural Economics, Czech Academy of Agricultural Sciences, vol. 63(12), pages 559-568.
    11. Pierre Damien Ntihinyurwa & Walter Timo de Vries, 2021. "Farmland Fragmentation, Farmland Consolidation and Food Security: Relationships, Research Lapses and Future Perspectives," Land, MDPI, vol. 10(2), pages 1-39, January.
    12. Asfaw, Solomon & Lipper, Leslie, 2015. "Adaptation to Climate Change and its Impacts on Food Security: Evidence from Niger," 2015 Conference, August 9-14, 2015, Milan, Italy 225667, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    13. Ntihinyurwa, Pierre Damien & de Vries, Walter Timo, 2021. "Farmland fragmentation concourse: Analysis of scenarios and research gaps," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 100(C).
    14. Arimoto, Yutaka & 有本, 寛 & アリモト, ユタカ, 2011. "The impact of farmland readjustment and consolidation on structural adjustment: The case of Niigata, Japan," CEI Working Paper Series 2011-3, Center for Economic Institutions, Institute of Economic Research, Hitotsubashi University.
    15. Nedumaran, S. & Kadiyala, D.M. & Srigiri, S.R. & Roberto, V. & McDermid, S., 2018. "Climate change impacts and vulnerability of fallow-chickpea based farm households in India: Assessment using Integrated modeling approach," 2018 Conference, July 28-August 2, 2018, Vancouver, British Columbia 277100, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    16. Alejandro Lopez-Feldman, 2013. "Climate change, agriculture, and poverty: A household level analysis for rural Mexico," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 33(2), pages 1126-1139.
    17. Momanyi, Denis & Lagat, Prof. Job K. & Ayuya, Dr. Oscar I., 2016. "Analysis of the Marketing Behaviour of African Indigenous Leafy Vegetables among Smallholder Farmers in Nyamira County, Kenya," MPRA Paper 69202, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 27 Jan 2016.
    18. Latruffe, Laure & Piet, Laurent, 2013. "Does land fragmentation affect farm performance? A case study from Brittany," Factor Markets Working Papers 151, Centre for European Policy Studies.
    19. Issahaku, Gazali & Abdulai, Awudu, "undated". "Adaptation to Climate Change and its influence on Household Welfare in Ghana," 2017 Annual Meeting, July 30-August 1, Chicago, Illinois 259938, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    20. Munir Ahmed & Ghulam Mustafa & Muhammad Iqbal, 2016. "Impact of Farm Households’ Adaptations to Climate Change on Food Security: Evidence from Different Agro-ecologies of Pakistan," The Pakistan Development Review, Pakistan Institute of Development Economics, vol. 55(4), pages 561-588.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bla:agecon:v:50:y:2019:i:1:p:39-49. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/iaaeeea.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.