Reports Outline Risk Management Study Findings from University for Development Studies (Understanding Drought Impacts On Livelihoods and Risk Management Strategies: South African Smallholder Farmers’ Perspectives): Risk Management

2024 JUN 05 (NewsRx) -- By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Insurance Daily News -- Investigators discuss new findings in Risk Management. According to news reporting originating from Tamale, Ghana, by NewsRx correspondents, research stated, “Drought is one of the main causes of food insecurity, malnutrition and poverty. It is therefore important to understand the perception of farmers on socioeconomic and environmental impacts of drought and the strategies employed to manage it.”

Funders for this research include National Research Foundation (NRF) through the Thuthuka funding instrument (NRF rating track) grant, University of the Free State through the Central Research Fund (CRF) of the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences.

Our news editors obtained a quote from the research from University for Development Studies, “Using data collected from 301 smallholder households in Thaba Nchu, South Africa, the study contributes to three perspectives: analyse the perceived impact of drought, examine the determinants of the perceived impact, and identify factors affecting the intensity of drought-risk management (DRM) practices employed by smallholder farming households. The findings from the principal component analysis (PCA) revealed three main dimensions of the perceived drought impact: social, economic, and environmental impacts. The results from the seemingly unrelated regression analysis applied to the three PCA dimensions indicated that different socio-economic and institutional factors have a different influence on the three dimensions. In addition, the results from the count data modelling showed that factors such as age, household size, non-farm work and extension services are significant in determining the intensity of DRM strategies implemented by farmers in the study area. The study therefore recommends that climate risk management be integrated into the provision of extension services, particularly in drought-prone areas such as the Free State Province.”

According to the news editors, the research concluded: “Furthermore, encouraging farmers to engage in non-agricultural economic activities is also crucial, as this can serve as insurance against events such as drought.”

This research has been peer-reviewed.

For more information on this research see: Understanding Drought Impacts On Livelihoods and Risk Management Strategies: South African Smallholder Farmers’ Perspectives. Natural Hazards, 2024. Natural Hazards can be contacted at: Springer, One New York Plaza, Suite 4600, New York, Ny, United States. (Springer - www.springer.com; Natural Hazards - http://www.springerlink.com/content/0921-030x/)

The news editors report that additional information may be obtained by contacting Gideon Danso-Abbeam, University for Development Studies, Dept. of Agribusiness, Tamale, Ghana. Additional authors for this research include Collins C. Okolie, Temitope O. Ojo and Abiodun A. Ogundeji.

The direct object identifier (DOI) for that additional information is: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11069-024-06561-w. This DOI is a link to an online electronic document that is either free or for purchase, and can be your direct source for a journal article and its citation.

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