Towards household food security in Ghana: assessment of Ghana’s expanded forest plantation programme in Asante Akim South District

This study primarily presents a contribution analysis of the outcomes of the expanded forest plantation programme (EFPP) as a community-based forest governance intervention to enhance household food security. A cross sectional research design with simple random sampling technique was used to select the study sites and respondents. In all, four (4) out of ten (10) settlements implementing the EFPP in the Asante Akyim South District of Ghana were selected. Questionnaires were administered to 80 beneficiaries proportionally selected from the study sites and in-depth interviews were conducted with key stakeholders implementing the programme. The discussion of the results was informed by the theory of change analysis framework to assess the contribution of the programme to household food security. The theory of change tool helped to identify progress towards the achievement of potential and probable outcomes of the programme. The findings reveal that the availability of food crops at the household level and the district at large increased through the EFPP. Between the years 2011 and 2013, 2763.1426 Metric Tonnes (Mt) of food crops were produced from 444.4046 ha of land in the district from the programme. Also, an average of GH¢ 229 ($72) comprising both monthly allowances received for planting and nurturing trees and income derived from the sale of food crops produced increased the economic power and livelihood outcomes of beneficiaries. This has had a contributing effect on the physical availability and accessibility of food crops at the household level. Hence, scaling up the EFPP to cover many beneficiaries, and a budget allocation for the food crop production component of the programme through the provision of improved crop seeds for interplanting would promote food production and security at the household and district levels.     

Effective livelihood adaptation to climate change disturbance: Scale dimensions of practice in Mozambique

Natural resource-dependent societies in developing countries are facing increased pressures linked to global climate change. While social-ecological systems evolve to accommodate variability, there is growing evidence that changes in drought, storm and flood extremes are increasing exposure of currently vulnerable populations. In many countries in Africa, these pressures are compounded by disruption to institutions and variability in livelihoods and income. The interactions of both rapid and slow onset livelihood disturbance contribute to enduring poverty and slow processes of rural livelihood renewal across a complex landscape. We explore cross-scale dynamics in coping and adaptation response, drawing on qualitative data from a case study in Mozambique. The research characterises the engagements across multiple institutional scales and the types of agents involved, providing insight into emergent conditions for adaptation to climate change in rural economies. The analysis explores local responses to climate shocks, food security and poverty reduction, through informal institutions, forms of livelihood diversification and collective land-use systems that allow reciprocity, flexibility and the ability to buffer shocks. However, the analysis shows that agricultural initiatives have helped to facilitate effective livelihood renewal, through the reorganisation of social institutions and opportunities for communication, innovation and micro-credit. Although there are challenges to mainstreaming adaptation at different scales, this research shows why it is critical to assess how policies can protect conditions for emergence of livelihood transformation.     

Micro-level perception to climate change and adaptation issues: A prelude to mainstreaming climate adaptation into developmental landscape in India

Climate change adds another dimension of challenges to the growth and sustainability of Indian agriculture. The growing exposure to livelihood shocks from climate variability/change and limited resource base of the rural community to adapt has reinforced the need to mainstream climate adaptation planning into developmental landscape. However, a better understanding of micro-level perceptions is imperative for effective and informed planning at the macro-level. In this paper, the grass-root level perspectives on climate change impacts and adaptation decisions were elicited at farm level in the Moga district of Punjab and Mahbubnagar district of Telangana, India. The farmers opined that the climatic variability impacts more than the long-term climate change. They observed change in the quantum, onset and distribution of rainfall, rise in minimum as well as maximum temperature levels, decline in crop yield and ground water depletion. The key socio-economic effects of climate change included decline in farm income, farm unemployment, rural migration and increased indebtedness among farmers. In order to cope with climate variability and change thereon, farmers resorted to adaptation strategies such as use of crop varieties of suitable duration, water conservation techniques, crop insurance and participation in non-farm activities and employment guarantee schemes. Farmers’ adaptation to changing climate was constrained by several technological, socio-economic and institutional barriers. These include limited knowledge on the costs–benefits of adaptation, lack of access to and knowledge of adaptation technologies, lack of financial resources and limited information on weather. Besides, lack of access to input markets, inadequate farm labour and smaller farm size were the other constraints. Further, on the basis of the grass-root elicitation a ‘Need-Based Adaptation’ planning incorporating farmers’ perceptions on climate change impacts, constraints in the adoption of adaptation strategies and plausible adaptation options were linked with the most suitable ongoing programmatic interventions of the Government of India. The study concluded that micro-level needs and constraints for various adaptation strategies and interventions should be an integral part of the programme development, implementation and evaluation in the entire developmental paradigm.     

Land degradation in gold mining communities of Ijesaland,Osun state,Nigeria

This paper identified 37 mining sites in ten gold mining communities of Ijesaland, Nigeria; examined the forms, levels and extent of land degradation resulted from mining activities; analyzed spatial pattern of land use and finally assessed the effects of mining on livelihood of the people. The study utilized global positioning system receiver to obtain geographic coordinates of mining sites. The forms of land degradation were captured through field observations and photographs while the levels and extent of the degraded lands were measured with measuring tape and the values were determined using mathematical formula for calculating area of a circle. Landsat datasets were used to analyze spatial pattern of land use and the effects of mining activities were examined through questionnaire administration on two hundred heads of household who were randomly selected. Focus group discussions (FGD) were organized among adult men and women to complement information obtained from questionnaire survey. The study discovered 354 mining pits as major form of land degradation, which ranges in sizes and depths. The average depth of mining pits was 3.4 m while an estimate of 25.8 ha. of land was degraded in the entire mining sites. There was a consensus among FGD participants and respondents of questionnaire survey that mining activities introduced adverse effects into their communities and attracted socio-economic benefits at the same time. The results of this study underscore the need for close monitoring of mining operations to reduce the negative impact of mining activities on the environment.     

Economic value of children and fertility preferences in a fishing community in Ghana

Although anecdotal evidence suggests that fertility levels in fishing communities, in Ghana, are very high, the influence of economic and cultural factors on fertility preferences in such communities has not been adequately explored. This article examines the fertility preferences of men and women living at Akplabanya, a fishing community in Ghana. Data were collected from a sample of 354 respondents. The findings of the study show that demand for labour, expectations of long term security, and gendered power relations have contributed to high fertility levels and preferences in the study area. It has been concluded that significant fertility decline in the area will only occur when fertility preferences of men have changed. Family planning programmes must therefore target both men and women. Improving economic status of women will also go a long way to bring about fertility transition in rural communities in Ghana.     

Ecological modernization and water resource management: a critique of institutional transitions in Ghana

Ghana is endowed with surface and ground water resources. These resources prior to the colonial era were managed by traditional societies through various conventional methods embedded in their cosmovision. However during the colonial and postcolonial regimes, in response to climate change, economic globalization, and population pressure, there has been a conscious shift from customary water management systems towards paradigms cast in the contemporary mould (legislation, policies, and institutions). These modern approaches have been shown over the years to be insufficient in ensuring water sustainability. This insufficiency manifests itself in the increasing water scarcity through anthropogenic-induced water resources degradation and severe climatic variability. Using content analysis, this paper reviews this transition, first to fully understand the intricacies of the evolution and second to draw lessons for better water resources management in Ghana. This paper contends that although Ghana’s water related institutions, laws, and policies are undergoing significant reforms, implementation and practice remains embedded in weak ecological modernization (EM). Institutionalizing a narrow conception of EM will only perpetuate ‘organized irresponsibility’ and permit the continued production of ecological problems, leaving open the question of whether modernization is compatible with ecological sustainability. Though customary water management approaches are not entirely devoid of limitations, simply branding them as obsolete may obviate an important vehicle for water sustainability. In the spirit paradigmatic complementarity, ecosystem-friendly indigenous approaches must be integrated with contemporary management systems for the long term goal of sustainability.     

Spatiotemporal variability of meteorological droughts in southeastern USA

Droughts in the southeast USA have been linked to economic losses and intractable water conflicts. The region has witnessed several severe droughts events during the period from 1901 to 2005. In this study, spatiotemporal variability in meteorological drought characteristics in the southeast were analyzed using two different datasets by the means of standard precipitation index and standard precipitation evapotranspiration index for the period 1901–2005 for agricultural and non-agricultural seasons. The study periods were divided into three epochs 1901–1935, 1936–1970, and 1971–2005 and drought characteristics, in terms of severity, frequency, number, and trends were analyzed. Additionally, areal extent, drought severities and return periods associated with three severe drought years 1904, 1954, and 2000 were analyzed. Except for the state of Florida, results indicate decrease in drought severity during the recent epoch of 1970–2005 in the study domain. Trend analysis confirms that the study domain has become wetter over the last 105 years. Wetting trends were more prominent in the agricultural season. Additionally, droughts seem to have migrated from the western part of the study area encompassing the states of Alabama, Tennessee, Louisiana, and Mississippi to the Florida panhandle region during the recent epoch. Droughts exhibited higher spatiotemporal variability during the agricultural season compared to the non-agricultural seasons. Results also showed that early to mid-1950s experienced some of the most severe droughts in the study domain. Some of the drought events, such as the drought of 1954 and 2000, have been equivalent to a 100-year drought event in the southeast. The results from this study form the benchmark for studying the impacts of future climate change projections on meteorological droughts in the southeast.     

Sustainability of groundwater in Mali,West Africa

The following paper describes the goals and some preliminary work in the Bani sustainability study, an ongoing project in Mali, West Africa. Rural communities in Mali are increasingly relying on hand-pumps, which tap groundwater resources, as a means of obtaining potable water. The long-term sustainable yield of groundwater resources is not known but can be evaluated in sustainability study. In 2005, a groundwater sustainability study was established along the Bani River of Mali. The Bani study collected groundwater levels that were used in a conceptual groundwater flow model—the Bani model—to develop an understanding of current aquifer conditions and to make limited predictions of sustainability under various future scenarios. The Bani model showed the climatic parameters of recharge (derived from precipitation) and evapotranspiration to influence simulated groundwater levels and groundwater volume available, while increased pumping rates, due to population growth, showed little effect. When considered in the context of the actual Bani sustainability study area, the change in groundwater levels resulting from climatic parameters may have negative implications, especially during several consecutive years of decreased precipitation, such as drought, or if downward trends anticipated for precipitation continue.     

Adaptation of Standardised Precipitation Index for understanding watertable fluctuations and groundwater resilience in hard-rock areas of India

Groundwater use in India, and many developing countries, is linked to livelihood and well-being of village communities. It is, therefore, important to characterise groundwater behaviour and resilience and identify strategies that will help to improve the sustainability of groundwater supplies. The concept of Standardised Precipitation Index (SPI) has been widely used for analysing rainfall drought. In this study, we adapt SPI to understand watertable fluctuations and assess resilience of groundwater supplies vis-à-vis rainfall variability from one year to the next. The modified SPI, called Groundwater Resilience Index (GRI), represents a normalized continuous watertable elevation variability function. The index is applied to two districts, viz., Udaipur and Aravalli in Rajasthan and Gujarat, India, respectively, to assess its usefulness. To evaluate the association of rainfall variability with groundwater depth fluctuation, SPI was also calculated. The study showed that GRI varies less than SPI, indicating that groundwater availability is less variable than the rainfall in both districts. This means that groundwater increases reliability of water supply for irrigation in both districts. The estimated SPI and GRI at 6-month intervals for the study period show that even though the groundwater is not stressed (normal condition in 75% of the months observed), there is variation in resilience of the aquifer system to drought and extreme events. Overall, the study indicated that the proposed GRI can be a useful tool for understanding watertable fluctuations and assessing groundwater resilience, especially to prioritise areas for groundwater recharge when funds for recharge works are limited.     

Differential impacts of climate change on communities in the middle hills region of Nepal

There is a growing understanding that the impacts of climate change affect different communities within a country, in a variety of ways—not always uniformly. This article reports on research conducted in the middle hills region of Nepal that explored climate change vulnerability in terms of exposure, sensitivity and adaptive capacity across different well-being groups, genders of the head of household and household location. In the study region, dry land farming has increasingly experienced climate-induced changes to farm productivity and natural resources. The experience of vulnerability to decreased livelihood options and natural resource hazards due to a changing climate varied according to household wealth and well-being status, with very poor and poor households more vulnerable than medium and well-off households. The research indicates that the climate change adaptation would benefit by considering: (i) differential impacts of vulnerability mainly based on well-being status of households; (ii) understanding of the local socio-political context and underlying causes of vulnerability and its application; and (iii) identifying vulnerable populations for the units of vulnerability analysis and adaptation planning.     

Climate (in)justice,vulnerability and livelihoods in the Caribbean: The case of the indigenous Caribs in northeastern St. Vincent

This paper examines climate justice from the perspective of three remote indigenous Carib communities located in northeastern St. Vincent, amidst their vulnerability to climatic hazards. The study contributes to the growing body of literature that explores the impacts climate-induced changes are having on Indigenous peoples through its explicit focus on this distinctive social group. The paper entails a detail case study of the particular ways the recent onset of two consecutive extreme weather events have impacted livelihood activities in these traditional farming villages. Primary data were collected in the aftermath of a severe drought that was followed by Hurricane Tomas in 2010, using a mixed method approach involving a questionnaire survey of 311 households, 70 unstructured interviews and 2 focus group sessions held in each of the three communities. The combined impact of these extreme weather events not only brought to light how exposed and sensitive these communities are to climatic hazards, but also illustrated some of the underlying issues driving vulnerability at the local scale that must be dealt with if climate justice is to be achieved. We argue that the factors driving vulnerability within these communities are partly a function of centuries of economic neglect and political marginalization and are also strongly related to the communities’ characteristically lower-socio economic status, geographic location, heavy reliance on land-based resources, coupled with a range of cognitive barriers that affect residents’ capacity to adapt to a changing and variable regional climate regime.     

Struggles over family land? Tree crops,land and labour in Ghana’s Brong-Ahafo region

Agricultural land use in much of Brong-Ahafo region, Ghana has been shifting from the production of food crops towards increased cashew nut cultivation in recent years. This article explores everyday, less visible, gendered and generational struggles over family farms in West Africa, based on qualitative, participatory research in a rural community that is becoming increasingly integrated into the global capitalist system. As a tree crop, cashew was regarded as an individual man’s property to be passed on to his wife and children rather than to extended family members, which differed from the communal land tenure arrangements governing food crop cultivation. The tendency for land, cash crops and income to be controlled by men, despite women’s and young people’s significant labour contributions to family farms, and for women to rely on food crop production for their main source of income and for household food security, means that women and girls are more likely to lose out when cashew plantations are expanded to the detriment of land for food crops. Intergenerational tensions emerged when young people felt that their parents and elders were neglecting their views and concerns. The research provides important insights into gendered and generational power relations regarding land access, property rights and intra-household decision-making processes. Greater dialogue between genders and generations may help to tackle unequal power relations and lead to shared decision-making processes that build the resilience of rural communities.     

Cryospheric hazards and risk perceptions in the Sagarmatha (Mt. Everest) National Park and Buffer Zone,Nepal

Glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs) are among the most serious cryospheric hazards for mountain communities. Multiple studies have predicted the potential risks posed by rapidly expanding glacial lakes in the Sagarmatha (Mt. Everest) National Park and Buffer Zone of Nepal. People’s perceptions of such cryospheric hazards can influence their actions, beliefs, and responses to those hazards and associated risks. This study provides a systematic approach that combines household survey data with ethnography to analyze people’s perceptions of GLOF risks and the socioeconomic and cultural factors influencing their perceptions. A statistical logit model of household data showed a significant positive correlation between the perceptions of GLOF risks and livelihood sources, mainly tourism. Risk perceptions are also influenced by spatial proximity to glacial lakes and whether a village is in potential flood zones. The 2016 emergency remediation work implemented in the Imja Tsho (glacial lake) has served as a cognitive fix, especially in the low-lying settlements. Much of uncertainty and confusions related GLOF risks among locals can be attributed to a disconnect between how scientific information is communicated to the local communities and how government climate change policies have been limited to awareness campaigns and emergency remediation efforts. A sustainable partnership of scientists, policymakers, and local communities is urgently needed to build a science-driven, community-based initiative that focuses not just in addressing a single GLOF threat but develops on a comprehensive cryospheric risk management plan and considers opportunities and challenges of tourism in the local climate adaptation policies.

     

Ecological health effects of rural livelihood and poverty reduction strategies in the Lake Bosomtwe basin of Ghana

Despite the growing recognition that poverty and environmental degradation remain a threat to achieving sustainable development goals, poverty–environment relationship is rarely explored. Crucial is the changing geography of the Lake Bosomtwe basin of Ghana. In this paper we examine how intensive and extensive fishing and farming in the name of livelihood sustainability, poverty reduction and human well-being undermine ecological health within the lake basin by subjecting data collected from 250 respondents to factor analysis. From a geo-referenced and processed classification of remotely sensed and GIS images over three periods using the maximum likelihood classifier algorithm, the results showed that, built up areas within the lake basin increased from 543.64 ha in 1986 to 7682.97 ha in 2008. Dense forest and rangeland decreased from 8698.95 and 22,660.88 ha over the same period to 1416.33 and 8577.99 ha in 2008 respectively. Other indicators such as water levels and fish stock also saw drastic reduction. The results further showed that major changes in the ecological landscape of the basin over the years are the outcomes of both direct and indirect drivers such as slash and burn agriculture, unregulated development of tourism facilities, overfishing, use of illegal fishing gear, poverty, annual overturn, climate change, market and institutional failures. Hence, a paradigm shift from the traditional site level forest restoration efforts to a landscape level, and a “conservation first principle” as a top priority in planning for the future, as well as focus on non-farm activities to reduce pressure on the natural capital are required.     

Risk in the Okavango Delta in the face of social and environmental change

Information from 117 questionnaires and focus groups in four villages in the Okavango Delta, Botswana was used to identify households exposed to different levels of risk in order to relate them to various livelihood activities and coping strategies. Current household strategies such as migration and diversification that are used to cope with recurring hazards such as drought, reduced flooding and animal disease are becoming more limited because of fencing policies and changed flooding regimes. In the light of future challenges such as climate change and increased upstream water abstractions, the heavy reliance on government assistance will probably increase especially among female-headed households and high-risk households. Without targeted initiatives based on spatial and social distributions of risk, then the dependency syndrome of Botswana is likely to continue and be exacerbated.