Households’ Perceptions and Adaptation Techniques to Climate Variability in DroughtProne Areas of the Amhara Region, Ethiopia
Abstract
This study examines households’ perceptions to climate variability and responses taken for food security in drought-prone areas of the Amhara Region, taking Lay Gayint district as a study site. Questionnaire survey, key informants interview and focus group discussions were employed to collect the primary data. A total of 201 households participated in the questionnaire survey. The study revealed that the high inter-annual and inter-seasonal rainfall variability were the primary cause for the decline of crop production and households’ vulnerability to food security. This could be the reason that the majority of the households faced food deficit for several months in the year and the gap is filled by the government safety nets and other income generating activities. In all agro-ecological zones, the majority of the households perceived that annual rainfall is inadequate to support the growing of crops and grazing of animals. The study households also predicted that recurrent droughts would occur in the future mainly due to land degradation, high population pressure and erratic rainfall. The study found that planting trees for the market, livestock fattening, and stocking seed reserves to be vital adaptive strategies employed by the majority of the better-off households while, whereas the poor and vulnerable households utilized short-term responses to meet the shortfall of consumption needs. The study recommends that households’ vulnerability to climate change and food insecurity could be minimized through appropriate and targeted risk reduction and management interventions that are well integrated to households’ adaptive strategies related to climate change.References
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