Household resilience to drought: The case of Salima District in Malawi

This study identifies factors that affect resilience to drought among smallholder farmers in Salima, one of the districts frequently affected by drought in Malawi. The study contributes to the existing literature by constructing a drought resilience index (DRI) and uses it to determine the effect of...

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Autores principales: Banda, Taonga F., Phiri, M.A.R., Mapemba, L.D., Maonga, Beston B.
Formato: Artículo preliminar
Lenguaje:Inglés
Publicado: International Food Policy Research Institute 2016
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/147755
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author Banda, Taonga F.
Phiri, M.A.R.
Mapemba, L.D.
Maonga, Beston B.
author_browse Banda, Taonga F.
Maonga, Beston B.
Mapemba, L.D.
Phiri, M.A.R.
author_facet Banda, Taonga F.
Phiri, M.A.R.
Mapemba, L.D.
Maonga, Beston B.
author_sort Banda, Taonga F.
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description This study identifies factors that affect resilience to drought among smallholder farmers in Salima, one of the districts frequently affected by drought in Malawi. The study contributes to the existing literature by constructing a drought resilience index (DRI) and uses it to determine the effect of drought resilience on the welfare of farming households. Principal Com-ponents Analysis (PCA) is used to construct the DRI. Appreciating that smallholder farmers actively respond to events that threaten their livelihoods, the study identified how factors such as household assets, social capital, the size of land held by the farming household, and others factors help farmers to absorb adverse welfare effects resulting from prolonged dry spells and droughts. In order to capture the effect of drought on the welfare of farming households, a stochastic frontier production function is estimated. Results suggest that over 62 percent of households in the study area were not resilient and, hence, vulnerable to the adverse effects of dry spells. Factors such as age of the household head, size of the farm family, landholding size, and the number of immediate family members living outside the household are identified as af-fecting the drought resilience of farming households. The study also finds a positive correlation between resilience and improved household welfare. The policy implications from the results of this study include promoting productivity enhancing technologies, diversifying crop production from maize, and pursuing household livelihoods outside of agriculture in order to reduce the risks to household welfare resulting from drought.
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spelling CGSpace1477552025-11-06T05:34:16Z Household resilience to drought: The case of Salima District in Malawi Banda, Taonga F. Phiri, M.A.R. Mapemba, L.D. Maonga, Beston B. shock households welfare smallholders drought livelihoods resilience This study identifies factors that affect resilience to drought among smallholder farmers in Salima, one of the districts frequently affected by drought in Malawi. The study contributes to the existing literature by constructing a drought resilience index (DRI) and uses it to determine the effect of drought resilience on the welfare of farming households. Principal Com-ponents Analysis (PCA) is used to construct the DRI. Appreciating that smallholder farmers actively respond to events that threaten their livelihoods, the study identified how factors such as household assets, social capital, the size of land held by the farming household, and others factors help farmers to absorb adverse welfare effects resulting from prolonged dry spells and droughts. In order to capture the effect of drought on the welfare of farming households, a stochastic frontier production function is estimated. Results suggest that over 62 percent of households in the study area were not resilient and, hence, vulnerable to the adverse effects of dry spells. Factors such as age of the household head, size of the farm family, landholding size, and the number of immediate family members living outside the household are identified as af-fecting the drought resilience of farming households. The study also finds a positive correlation between resilience and improved household welfare. The policy implications from the results of this study include promoting productivity enhancing technologies, diversifying crop production from maize, and pursuing household livelihoods outside of agriculture in order to reduce the risks to household welfare resulting from drought. 2016-06-03 2024-06-21T09:23:16Z 2024-06-21T09:23:16Z Working Paper https://hdl.handle.net/10568/147755 en Open Access application/pdf International Food Policy Research Institute Banda, Taonga F.; Phiri, M.A.R.; Mapemba, L.D.; and Maonga, B.B. 2016. Household resilience to drought: The case of Salima District in Malawi. MaSSP Working Paper 14. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). https://hdl.handle.net/10568/147755
spellingShingle shock
households
welfare
smallholders
drought
livelihoods
resilience
Banda, Taonga F.
Phiri, M.A.R.
Mapemba, L.D.
Maonga, Beston B.
Household resilience to drought: The case of Salima District in Malawi
title Household resilience to drought: The case of Salima District in Malawi
title_full Household resilience to drought: The case of Salima District in Malawi
title_fullStr Household resilience to drought: The case of Salima District in Malawi
title_full_unstemmed Household resilience to drought: The case of Salima District in Malawi
title_short Household resilience to drought: The case of Salima District in Malawi
title_sort household resilience to drought the case of salima district in malawi
topic shock
households
welfare
smallholders
drought
livelihoods
resilience
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/147755
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