Adoption of climate-smart agriculture practices by smallholder dairy farmers in Chipinge and Mutasa Districts of the Manicaland Province, Zimbabwe

Abstract

Climate change poses significant constraints on smallholder dairy production systems in Zimbabwe, particularly in drought-prone regions such as Manicaland Province. This study analysed farmers’ perceptions of climate change and their influence on the adoption of Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA) practices among smallholder dairy farmers in Chipinge and Mutasa districts. It further quantified the extent of adoption of adaptation- and mitigation-based CSA practices and identified socio-economic and institutional determinants shaping adoption decisions. Guided by the Climate-Smart Agriculture framework of the Food and Agriculture Organization, which integrates productivity, resilience, and greenhouse gas mitigation objectives, the study employed a cross-sectional survey design. Primary data were collected from 154 smallholder dairy households using structured questionnaires. Descriptive statistics indicated that feed shortages (59.6%) and water scarcity (55.0%) were the most severe climate-related constraints, while 84.7% of respondents reported high awareness of the impacts of climate change on dairy production. Inferential analysis revealed a statistically significant association between climate change perception and CSA adoption (χ², p < 0.05), indicating that perception significantly shapes adoption behaviour. Binary logistic regression results showed that CSA adoption was significantly influenced by household size, education level, herd size, farming experience, access to finance, and perception of climate variability (p < 0.05), confirming that both human capital and resource endowments are key adoption drivers. Further, multinomial logistic regression results demonstrated that district location significantly influenced farmers’ choice among adaptation-only, mitigation-only, and integrated CSA strategies (p < 0.05), highlighting spatial heterogeneity in adoption behaviour. The model exhibited acceptable explanatory power, confirming robustness in predicting CSA adoption categories. Despite high awareness levels (84.7%), CSA adoption remains constrained by structural socio-economic and institutional barriers. Adaptation practices are widely adopted but predominantly reactive and short-term coping strategies, while mitigation practices remain limited and are primarily motivated by productivity gains rather than by emission-reduction objectives. Agroforestry demonstrated moderate adoption (34%) and provided synergistic adaptation–mitigation benefits. v The study concludes that although smallholder dairy farmers exhibit adaptive capacity, their responses remain largely survivalist rather than transformative. Strengthening access to finance, enhancing extension services, and providing targeted incentives for mitigation-oriented technologies are critical to promoting integrated and sustainable climate-smart dairy systems in Zimbabwe