Drought responses and adaptation strategies to climate change by pastoralists in the semi-arid area, Laikipia County, Kenya

Submitted by Jane Nyawira Maina on
EfD Authors:

This study was undertaken in Laikipia County, Kenya, to identify factors influencing the choices of strategies by pastoralists to adapt to climate change. The study particularly evaluates the role of perceived climate extremes (frequency of dry spells and droughts), early warning information, and access to private ranch grazing, in determining response decisions to climate change. Besides, we test if households jointly adopt climate change adaptation strategies. The primary data collected from 440 sample households was analyzed using the multivariate probit (MVP) model.

Agriculture, Climate Change

Selling at the farmgate? Role of liquidity constraints and implications for agricultural productivity

Submitted by Jane Nyawira Maina on
EfD Authors:

Market trends in many developing countries indicate that selling agricultural produce to itinerant traders at the farmgate has been rising, despite criticism that the practice preys on and exploits farmers. Using a cross-sectional data set of 525 households, we investigate the factors influencing participation in farmgate trading and its effects on agricultural productivity in western Kenya. We specifically consider the role of liquidity–related variables within a context of the perennial export crops, a contribution that has received less attention in literature.

Agriculture

Does the inverse farm size productivity hypothesis hold for perennial monocrop systems in developing countries? Evidence from Kenya

Submitted by Jane Nyawira Maina on
EfD Authors:

The inverse farm size and productivity relationship (IR) is a recurring theme in the literature. However, most previous studies were undertaken within a setting of mixed cropping systems. In this article, we investigate the effect of farm size on productivity within the context of a perennial monocropping system, acute competition for farmland, frequent subdivision of farms and declining yields. We apply household survey data of smallholder tea farms in western Kenya and consider both technical efficiency (TE) and the yield per hectare as indicators of productivity.

Agriculture

Subsidies—Help or Hurt? A Study from Vietnamese Fisheries

Submitted by Luat Do on
EfD Authors:

Subsidies are part of the set of management tools that governments apply to modernize their fishing fleets and enable them to engage in offshore and international fisheries. Research has shown that subsidies often lead to overcapacity and overfishing, resulting in the depletion of fish stocks. A few studies, however, have found some positive effects for particular subsidies. In this paper, we investigate a credit-linked subsidy scheme in Vietnam, which seems to be justified on the basis of economic, social, and environmental considerations.

Fisheries, Policy Design

Can payments for forest environmental services help improve income and attitudes toward forest conservation? Household-level evaluation in the Central Highlands of Vietnam

Submitted by Luat Do on
EfD Authors:

Payments for environmental services (PES) are considered an effective approach to solving both environmental and socio-economic issues. However, there lies a significant research gap in the context of their impact on income and attitudes toward conservation. Using household survey data and the propensity score matching technique, this study evaluates the impact of the payments for forest environmental services (PFES) program on household income and attitudes toward forest conservation in the Central Highlands of Vietnam.

Forestry, Policy Design

Scale and scope economies in small household rice farming in Vietnam

Submitted by Luat Do on
EfD Authors:

The Vietnamese agricultural sector has experienced a dramatic structural change based on increased specialization in rice cultivation. However, small-scale rice-farmers have continued to grow multiple crops, especially in less developed provinces. While the literature advocates crop diversification for reasons of both economic and ecological sustainability, there lacks empirical evidence as to whether crop diversification brings efficiency and productivity gains to small farms.

Agriculture

Stakeholder perceptions towards sustainable shrimp aquaculture in Vietnam

Submitted by Luat Do on

Aquaculture is the fastest growing food production industry globally and is considered to have the greatest potential to meet the growing demand for seafood and being a solution to overfishing. Despite the benefits of aquaculture, the rapid growth and intensification of production (so-called conventional aquaculture) has raised concerns about food safety, fish welfare, and environmental and social issues stemming from a tragedy of the commons.

Policy Design

What motivates farmers to accept good aquaculture practices in development policy? Results from choice experiment surveys with small-scale shrimp farmers in Vietnam

Submitted by Luat Do on
EfD Authors:

This study explores small-scale Vietnamese shrimp farmers’ preferences for good aquaculture practices and proactive aquaculture development policy to encourage wastewater treatment and antibiotic use. Data were collected through a survey of farmers using two discrete choice experiments with a sample size of 450 respondents.

Policy Design