Influence of social capital in adopting climate change adaptation strategies: empirical evidence from rural areas of Ambo district in Ethiopia

The impact of climate change is increasingly affecting the daily lives of poor farmer households. An understanding of the social dimension profoundly shapes the way in which policy-makers develop adaptation policies. This paper investigates the influence of components of social capital on the adoption of climate change adaptation strategies using data from rural households in Ethiopia. First, principal component analysis (PCA) was performed on the dataset of components of social capital to construct composite indicators for measuring farmers' social capital. Second, the logit model was employed to investigate the influence of components of social capital on adopting climate change adaptation strategies. The results suggest that institutional trust positively influences climate change adaptation decisions. On the contrary, bonding social capital negatively affects the adoption decision. The following implications are worthy of consideration for improving farmers' adoption of adaptation strategies: improving the institutions' communication and sharing of information with farmers and investing in programmes that build links across groups in communities and up to those in authority.

Automated summary

In this study, it was found that institutional trust has a positive influence on climate change adaptation decisions, while bonding social capital has a negative impact on adoption decisions. To improve farmers' adoption of adaptation strategies, enhancing communication and information sharing between institutions and farmers, as well as investing in programs that build connections within and across communities, is recommended.