Assessment of the level of awareness of climate-smart agricultural practices among smallholder farmers in Mwingi west sub-county, Kitui County, Kenya

Abstract

Smallholder farmers in Mwingi West Sub-county, Kitui County, rely heavily on rainfed agriculture, making them highly vulnerable to climate change. Although Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA) provides a sustainable approach to enhance productivity, resilience,and reduce emissions, its adoption in the region remains limited. This study assessed the level of awareness of Climate-Smart Agricultural (CSA) practices among smallholder farmers in Mwingi West Sub-county. The CSA practices considered included conservation agriculture (CA), mulching, water harvesting, irrigation technologies, integrated pest management (IPM), agroforestry, weather-based agro-advisories, inorganic fertiliser use, zai pits, and soil conservation structures. A cross-sectional design was employed, involving 393 randomly selected smallholder farmers, with the sample size determined using Yamane’s formula. In addition, purposive sampling was used to select seven agricultural extension officers and eight farmer groups for key informant interviews and focus group discussions. Data were analysed using chi-square tests and binary logistic regression in SPSS v26. The results showed that 83.2% of farmers were aware of CSA, yet significant disparities existed in sources of information, training participation, and knowledge of specific practices. These variables were statistically associated with CSA adoption at p < 0.05. To enhance CSA adoption, the study recommended strengthening extension services and baraza platforms to deliver regular, practical training; improving the use of digital tools such as radio, TV, SMS, and WhatsApp for timely information dissemination; and encouraging the formation of farmer groups to support peer learning and localised knowledge exchange.