Impact of climate change on smallholder farmers of goats and sheep: perception, awareness, adaptation and mitigation strategies in northern Jordan
摘要
This study aimed at determining the farmer’ socio-economic factors affecting the use of sustainable production strategies, farmer’ knowledge about climate change, constraints, signs and evidence faced by farmers and identifying adaptation and mitigation production practices implemented by farmers to cope with climate change in Jordan. In 2024, 109 goats and sheep farmers in northern Jordan were surveyed using a comprehensive questionnaire to gather data on farmer demographics, animals and barn characteristics, general knowledge and practices related to climate change, and adaptation and mitigation practices implemented by farmers. The Proc GLM of SAS was employed to analyze the data, and correlation test was used to explore relationships among variables. The main outcomes of this study reveal that the majority of farmers have a school education level or higher. The age group of farmers is concentrated between 30 and 49 years with moderate experience that ensures a good understanding of agricultural practices and their challenges. Data show limited financial resources, which may affect farmer ability to invest in improving productivity or adopting modern technologies. Most farmers own small or medium-sized herds, which may be related to limited income. A high portion of farmers does not receive regular extension services, indicating a gap in the transfer of modern knowledge and new technologies that could improve production and increase income. Farmers faced high feed costs, lack of financing, and scarcity of pastureland and water. Various climate change signs, constraints to use sustainable production strategies and information resources were reported by farmers. Results indicated that despite farmers having a high level of knowledge about the negative effects of climate change, the implementation of adaptation and mitigation strategies has been low. The study results indicated multiple relationships between farmer social characteristics—such as age, experience, education, and herd size—and their engagement with agricultural extension practices and climate change adaptation and mitigation. These relationships indicate that the adoption of adaptation and mitigation practices does not depend on a single factor, but rather on the interaction of a number of socioeconomic factors. In conclusion, small ruminant farmers need government financial and technical support, extension services, and new technologies to deal with climate change.