IMPACT OF ACCESS TO CLIMATE INFORMATION SERVICE AND UPTAKE OF CLIMATE SMART AGRICULTURAL TECHNOLOGIES ON MAIZE YIELD IN GHANA

Abstract

Climate information service (CIS) and Climate-smart agriculture (CSA) are complementary measures that has gain much attention in trying to adjust to and reduce the influence of the changing climate. This study explores the impact of access to CIS on CSA technologies uptake, the respective sources and channels they are received by farmers and consequently the impact on yield of maize. Descriptive statistics, Multivariate Probit Analysis (MVP) and Multinomial Endogenous Switching Regression Model (MESR) were used to assess the data. The finding shows that, access to various CIS are complementary. Generally, access to CIS was significant for uptake of various CSA technologies with 90% and 89.81% having access to CIS and uptake of various combinations of CSA technologies respectively. The major CIS accessed and CSA adopted were rainfall prediction & amount and planting time & fertilizer application and the combination of soil fertility management practices and pest & disease management practices respectively. MoFA and extension agents were the major source and channel of CIS/CSA access. Age, gender, status in the household, membership of FBO, VSLA, perception of climate change, access to extension and credit significantly determined various CIS access and CSA technologies uptake. The results however reveal that, the impact of uptake of some individual and combinations of CSA practices on maize yield was significantly negative, suggesting that, farmers who adopted such CSA technologies had lower yields and could have better yield had they not adopted. Stakeholders within the CIS and CSA nexus should partner to enforce bundled CIS and CSA technologies dissemination reflective of the various stages of production, whiles subsidized fertilizers and improved seeds made available at the districts for improve yield.