Analysis of the factors influencing the implementation of climate smart agriculture technologies in a climate change hot spot in South Africa

Worldwide, food shortages have occurred due to increased drought conditions associated with climate variability. Agriculture has been greatly affected, resulting in food shortages. In response, climate-smart agriculture (CSA) has been embraced by many countries as a way of alleviating this problem. The extent of CSA implementation has not yet been established in many areas. The present study thus sought to evaluate CSA to determine the factors that influence its implementation by smallholder farmers in Ditsobotla local Municipality, which is a climate change hotspot in South Africa. Questionnaires, field observations, key informant interviews and focus group discussions were used to gather data from smallholder farmers. Ninety households were sampled via snowball and purposive sampling approaches. The quantitative data were analysed via the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 30. The results show that the main determinants of CSA implementation among smallholder farmers include source of income, access to inputs, and source of inputs coupled with the influence of the frequency of agricultural extension officers’ visits. Smallholder farmers acknowledged that the implementation of CSA technologies can positively reduce the impact of climate variability. However, there should be regular visits by agricultural extension officers to support the farmers, with equitable access to inputs, subsidies and grants. The government, private organisations and community members should scale up collaboration to promote the implementation of CSA technologies and food security.