Impacts of Climate Change on Livelihood Assets, Crop and Livestock Production and Adaptation Strategies in the Hadiya Zone, Ethiopia

<p>Climate change negatively affects agricultural production, the natural resources base, and the livelihoods of communities. As such, adapting to climate change through agroforestry practices is important for sustainable agriculture. This study aimed to assess Impacts of Climate Change on Livelihood Assets, Crop and Livestock Production and Adaptation Strategies. Stratified random sampling techniques were employed. Data were collected through structured and semi-structured questionnaires. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 23 and Participatory Learning Action tools. The hierarchical multiple regression analysis revealed that climate change alone explained 27 percent of the variance in livestock production, F (1, 290) = 104.84, P< .001, R = .52, R<sup>2</sup> =.27; and that the climate changes alone explained 42 percent of the variance in crop production, F (1, 290) = 213.62, P< .05, R = .65, R<sup>2</sup> =.42. The five livelihood assets (natural, human, social, financial and physical capitals) were positively and significantly correlated with climate change, adaptive capacity, and crop and livestock production. This analysis implies that if one livelihood asset increases, the others increase too. The physical capital was negatively correlated with climate change among the five livelihood assets, r (290) = -.04, p >.001, two-tailed. Agroforestry systems and practices should be encouraged in the study area to enhance adaptation to climate change by addressing food, wood, and income needs. Consequently, this helps farmers to develop their livelihood assets and technical capability to launch ideas, experiences and information of agroforestry systems and practices.</p> <p>published by the <strong> <a href="https://innspub.net/international-journal-of-biosciences/">International Journal of Biosciences (IJB)</a></strong></p>