Effect of land use changes on adaptive strategies for smallholder agro-pastoralists in Kenya

摘要

Astudytocharacterizeexistingadaptivestrategiesandshiftsinsmallholderagro-pastoralistsinrelationtochangesinlanduseandlandsubdivisionswascarriedout.Atotalof48.9%ofrespondentindicatedthattherehadbeenashiftintheadaptivestrategieswhereunreliablerainfall,betteraccesstolandandwater,acquisitionofskills,shortageofpasturesandproximitytowildlifehabitatswerethemainfactorsinfluencingtheshifts.Shortageofrainfall,lackofcapitalintermsoftechnologyresourcerequirements,predation,livestockdiseasesandlackofseedsforbothpasturesandcropswererankedasthemajorconstraintsrecording88.9,55.6,45.6,35.6and30%ofrespondents,respectively(N=90).Earlyplanting,useofdroughtresistantcrops,predationcontrolandfeedconservationweresomeoftheimportantagro-pastoraladaptivestrategiesinthestudyarea.Thechangeinland-useledtoincreasedproblemsofpredationanddepredationleadingtoincreasedlivestock/wildlifeandcrop/wildlifeconflicts.Proximitytoinfrastructuressuchaswatersources,roadnetworksortransport,accesstocreditfacilitiesforinputacquisitionalsoaffectedland-usepractices.nbsp;