Gender Dynamics Of Climate-Smart Agriculture in A Changing Climate: A Study of Smallholder Farmers in the Wa West District

Abstract

Climate change is identified as one of the areas that pose a major risk to food security worldwide, threatening the attainment of Goal 2 of the Sustainable Development Goals. In Sub-Saharan Africa, where Ghana is located, for instance, extreme droughts already hinder the ability of people to cultivate food and rear livestock, and hence the need for pastoralists and agro-pastoralists to adapt to changes in water regimes to sustain their food security and welfare. Consequently, Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA) has emerged as an approach to transform agricultural systems by employing a group of strategies that aim to address the different challenges and the negative effects that climate change poses on agriculture, thereby reducing vulnerability, increasing agricultural production, and promoting adaptation and resilience. The study, which is underpinned by pragmatist philosophy and the Theory of Planned Behaviour, attempted to examine gendered dynamics' influence on CSA practices in the Wa West District. The study used a concurrent cross-sectional mixed method design and sampled 349 respondents from a population using purposive and stratified sampling methods. The data gathered through focus group discussions and interviews were analysed qualitatively, while those gathered through questionnaire administration were subjected to quantitative analysis using Stata software 17 and Excel to test the hypotheses. The study revealed that, both males and females perceived that there was climate change with more males perceiving an increase in temperature, decrease in rainfall, flooding and drought than females. Also, CSA adoption within the district is generally low, with more females adopting to the CSA than males. That aside, compared to male smallholder farmers between the ages of 18-33, male smallholder farmers between the ages of 34-49 are more likely to adopt conservation agriculture. Again, compared to female smallholder farmers between the ages of 18-33, those falling between the ages of 34-49 are more likely to adopt conservation agriculture, which was statistically significant. The study recommends that the Ministry of Food and Agriculture should prioritize training and sensitization programs on CSA practices for farmers, especially the male farmers, to enable them to adopt the technology with ease and accordingly support them with some incentives, such as certified seeds, to cushion them in their adoption.