ABSTRACT

Climate extreme events have significant impacts on the livelihoods of smallholder women farmers. The aim of the present study is to investigate the coping and adaptation measures that women farmers use to respond to specific climate extreme events. The data for the study comes from 187 smallholder women farmers from Upper West region of Ghana. The study employed the Bivariate Probit model in the empirical analysis. The results revealed that membership of farmer-based organizations and the use of climate information were the key factors which influenced women farmers' coping strategies against climate extreme events. Women farmers' adaptation measures were mainly influenced by access to credit. The key policy variable that influenced both coping and adaptation measures of women farmers was access to agricultural extension services. The study recommends that policy should focus on the promotion of specific coping and adaptation interventions against climate extreme events among women farmers. Policy should create enabling environment for the establishments of farmer-based organizations, increase women farmers' contact with women agricultural extension officers and remove institutional barriers that impede access to credit and the use of climate information.

摘要

气候极端事件对小农女农的生计产生重大影响。本研究的目的是调查女性农民用来应对特定气候极端事件的应对和适应措施。该研究的数据来自加纳上西部地区的 187 名小农女农民。该研究在实证分析中采用了双变量 Probit 模型。结果表明，农民组织的成员资格和气候信息的使用是影响女性农民应对气候极端事件的关键因素。女性农民的适应措施主要受获得信贷的影响。影响女性农民应对和适应措施的关键政策变量是获得农业推广服务。该研究建议政策应侧重于促进女性农民针对气候极端事件采取的具体应对和适应干预措施。政策应为建立以农民为基础的组织创造有利环境，增加女性农民与女性农业推广官员的联系，并消除阻碍获得信贷和使用气候信息的体制障碍。