Climate change is predicted to increase the frequency of extreme weather events, increasing the vulnerability of smallholder farmers dependent on rain-fed agriculture. We evaluate the extent to which farmers in Malawi suffer crop production losses due to extreme weather, and whether sustainable land management (SLM) practices help shield crop production losses from extreme events. We use a three period panel dataset where widespread floods and droughts occurred in separate periods, offering a unique opportunity to evaluate impacts using data collected immediately following these events. Results show that crop production outcomes were severely hit by both floods and droughts, with average losses ranging between 32–48 per cent. Legume intercropping provided protection against both floods and droughts, while green belts provided protection against floods. However, we find limited evidence that SLM adoption decisions are driven by exposure to weather shocks; rather, farmers with more productive assets are more likely to adopt.

中文翻译：

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马拉维的干旱和洪水：极端天气下对作物生产和可持续土地管理实践绩效的影响

预计气候变化将增加极端天气事件的频率，增加依赖雨养农业的小农的脆弱性。我们评估了马拉维农民因极端天气而遭受作物生产损失的程度，以及可持续土地管理 (SLM) 做法是否有助于保护作物生产损失免受极端事件的影响。我们使用三个时期的面板数据集，其中广泛的洪水和干旱发生在不同的时期，为使用这些事件后立即收集的数据评估影响提供了独特的机会。结果表明，作物生产成果受到洪水和干旱的严重影响，平均损失在 32% 至 48% 之间。豆类间作提供了抵御洪水和干旱的保护，而绿化带则提供了防洪保护。然而，我们发现有限的证据表明 SLM 采用决策是由暴露于天气冲击驱动的；相反，拥有更多生产性资产的农民更有可能采用。