Agriculture farming extension model for analysing climate change adaptation: A case study of Sri Lankan farmers

Abstract

Climate change and variability threaten the sustainability of agricultural and food production, especially in agrarian communities. In Sri Lanka, rainfall is expected to decline by almost 10% by the year 2050 and the largest increase in temperature can be experienced. Despite the potential risks of climate change on agricultural productivity, Sri Lanka does not have a dedicated policy to respond to climate change. Furthermore, there is a dearth of research done in Sri Lanka to provide an understanding of factors that shape farmers’ adaptation to climate change and institutional link to the adaptive capacity of farming households. In this study we have taken secondary data from the World Bank and Central Bank of Sri Lanka to show how the farming population decreased and deforesting occurred due to the urbanization as well as to low education of the farming community. The results show that the majority of farmers who have climate variability adaptation strategies in place are largely influenced by indigenous knowledge. Women and low-income earners are less likely to employ climate change adaptation strategies in order to improve their agricultural productivity. The results have implications that agricultural extension officers service is needed to keep them in the industry and introduce new foresting schemes to carbon deposit and finally reduce the urbanization process.