Farmers’ perception and reasons for practicing farmer managed natural regeneration in Tigray, Ethiopia

Abstract

Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration (FMNR) is a rapid, low cost and easily replicated approach to restore and improve degraded agricultural, forest and pasture lands. The study was conducted in low (500–1500 m.a.s.l) and mid (1500–2300 m.a.s.l) altitude agro-ecologies of Tigray region assessing farmer’s perception and reasons to practice FMNR. Purposive sampling was used to select three peasant associations (PA’s) from each agro-ecology. Simple random sampling was used to select respondents from household heads practicing FMNR. There were 15 respondents from each PA. Total respondents used for the study in both agro-ecologies were 90. All the data required for the study was collected through in-depth household survey and group discussions. Forty two percent (42.2%) of the respondents had 21–30 years of FMNR experience. Seventeen percent of the respondents with FMNR experience were from lowland and 26% were from mid land agro-ecology. FMNR has been practiced for more than two decades in the study areas. In both low and midland agro-ecologies, motivation of the respondents to practice FMNR was the training received from expert’s (37.1%) and neighbors’ success (29.2%). In the lowland, respondent’s main purpose to practice FMNR was fuel wood and fruit collection (49%) while in the midland the objectives were for fuel wood (50%), soil conservation (47%) and fodder (47%). FMNR has enormous importance in the livelihoods of the rural people especially in providing fuel wood, food/fruits, construction materials and farm equipment.

Farmers’ perspectives and context are key for the success and sustainability of farmer-managed natural regeneration (FMNR) in northeastern Ghana

“…However, studies on farmer adoption of FMNR have mainly relied on quantitative data from household surveys (e.g. Binam et al, 2015, Iiyama et al, 2017, Moore et al, 2020, Kibru, Husseini, Birhane, Haggar, & Solomon, 2020. This has limited the ability of researchers to understand what motivates farmers who practice FMNR, which perhaps also explains the lack of attention to whether farmers might prefer resource management strategies different from those of NGOs.…”

Remnant vegetation in farmland - its significance in ethnobotany and local ecosystem

“…RV along farmlands growing annual crops in India often comprises of plant species fundamental to local ecosystems, cultures, traditional practices and economy though very little research has been done on that (11,22,23). Such studies are crucial in assessing effective local management practices that address specific problems integral to target areas (24)(25)(26). Keeping these points in mind, the current study recorded the structure of RV along paddy fields in the undivided Kancheepuram District in Tamil Nadu of southern India and critically evaluated its importance on local biodiversity and ethnobotany.…”

Perceptions of Climate Change and Determinants of Adaptation Decisions of Smallholder Maize (Zea mays L.) Farmers in Tigray, Northern Ethiopia.

“…The research was conducted in five districts of Tigray: Tselemti and Medebay Zana in the northwestern zone, Na'eder Adet and Qolla Tembien in the central zone, and Kilte Awla'elo in the eastern zone (Figure 1). The Tigray region's geography is separated into three agro-ecologies: 8% highland (>2500 masl), 39% mid-highlands (1500-2500 masl), and 52 percent lowland (500-1500 masl) (Kibru et al, 2020). Tselemti and Qolla Tembien districts are classified as lowlands, while Medebay Zana, Na'eder Adet, and Kiltie Awla'elo districts are classified as mid highlands.…”

“…Over 80% of the Tigray population relies on mixed crop and livestock production as a source of income. Over 95% of Tigray's cultivated land is dominated by smallholder farmers who rely on rain-fed agriculture for survival (Kibru et al, 2020). The main crops grown are sorghum, maize, Tef, wheat, millets, and barley for family food consumption and sesame and cotton for the market.…”