Factors Affecting Adoption and Intensity of Use of Tef-Acacia decurrens-Charcoal Production Agroforestry System in Northwestern Ethiopia

The tef-Acacia decurrens-charcoal production agroforestry system (TACPA system) is a conventionally and uniquely adopted indigenous potential climate-smart agricultural technology (CSAT) in northwest Ethiopia. This study investigates factors determining farmers' adoption and intensity of use of the TACPA system using a descriptive statistic and a double-hurdle model. A total of 326 farming household heads were selected using multistage random sampling from two purposively chosen provinces. The descriptive statistics showed that 64.42% of the local farmers adopted the TACPA system, and the area covered by the adopter was 0.38 ha. Empirical estimates of the first hurdle revealed that credit, plot ownership, association, primary road distance, asset, farming experience, labor, family size, livestock, tenure, and marginal land influenced the adoption of the TACPA system. On the other hand, estimates of the second hurdle showed that the intensity of use of the TACPA system was determined by age, plot ownership, nativity, primary road distance use, livestock, tenure, secondary road distance, and experience. The complementarity between the adoption of the TACPA system and its intensity of use suggests the necessity of joint socio-economic policies to meet the priority needs of smallholder farmers of the study area and to disseminate the innovation to other parts of Africa with similar environmental conditions.

Automated summary

The study investigates the factors influencing the adoption and intensity of use of the TACPA system and found that factors such as credit, plot ownership, and farming experience affect the adoption of the system, while factors like age and nativity determine the intensity of use. The study highlights the importance of implementing socio-economic policies to meet the needs of smallholder farmers and to disseminate the innovation to other regions with similar environmental conditions.