Elderly smallholder farmers’ perceptions of and adaptation to climate variability and change in rural Ghana
ISSN: 1366-3666
Article publication date: 25 November 2021
Issue publication date: 28 April 2022
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to examine elderly smallholder farmers’ perceptions of and adaptation to climate variability and change in the Offinso Municipality, Ghana.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper used quantitative and qualitative methods. Quantitative data were analyzed with frequencies and chi-square tests, whereas qualitative data were thematically analyzed.
Findings
The results showed that elderly smallholder farmers’ knowledge of climate variability and climate change were based on their sex, level of formal education and experience in farming. Elderly smallholder farmers adopted both on-farm and off-farm strategies to cope with climate change and variability. The vulnerability of elderly smallholder farmers to climate change calls for social protection mechanisms such as a pension scheme that guarantees access to monthly cash transfers. Such a scheme will ease constraints to livelihood and ensure improved well-being.
Originality/value
Elderly smallholder farmers have remained invisible in discourses on perceptions and adaptation to climate change despite the surge in number of this category of farmers. This paper therefore represents an attempt to highlight the experiences of elderly smallholder farmers with climate variability and change.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
This research was supported by funding from the Department for International Development (DfID) under the Climate Impact Research Capacity and Leadership Enhancement (CIRCLE) programme, to which the authors are most grateful.
Citation
Appiah, D.O., Asante, F., Antwi-Boadi, L. and Serbeh, R. (2022), "Elderly smallholder farmers’ perceptions of and adaptation to climate variability and change in rural Ghana", Working with Older People, Vol. 26 No. 2, pp. 97-108. https://doi.org/10.1108/WWOP-09-2021-0052
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
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