The Farmer Response to Conservation Agriculture in Monze, Zambia

Joseph T. Mwale, Idani Lichilo, Mutinta Muyangwa

Conservation agriculture is promoted as a sustainable agricultural practice in Zambia in the wake of increasing shifts in rainfall patterns along with land degradation. Yet the practice has been partially adopted by most small-scale farmers in spite of the well-established socio-economic benefits. As part of the scientific endeavour to understand the socio-dynamics of conservation agriculture, this paper assesses the farmer response to the emergent agricultural practice under the hypothesis that adoption of the practice as promoted by agricultural development agencies is a pragmatic realization of a disrupted agro-ecological system under the increasing influence of socio-economic and bio-physical factors. Using a combination of principal components analysis and logistic regression, it has been established that there is a positive farmer response to conservation farming in view of the perceived negative effects of climate variability and the high utility derived from engaging in the practice. The most significant factors influencing the farmer response are climate variability and income status of the farmer among other factors including extension service delivery and labour intensity. The analysis leads to a logical conclusion that the probability that a farmer in Manungu agricultural block will adopt conservation farming is 40% if there is poor extension service delivery. It is, therefore, recommended for further research and agricultural development policy that cost-effectiveness should be a central feature of the design of conservation farming technologies for the smallholder farmers in light of the low income status of the farmers; and that pragmatic approaches to extension service delivery should be engaged to ensure successful adoption of conservation farming technologies.

https://doi.org/10.31871/WJRR.3.2.33