Climate smart land management practices for livelihood resilience in Ethiopia: A systematic review
Abrha Asefa, Mitiku Haile, Melaku Berhe, Amanuel Zenebe
Abstract
Ethiopia faces severe challenges from climate crises and it is threatening the livelihoods of millions of smallholder farmers reliant on rain-fed agriculture. The review explores climate change trends, variability and extreme events in Ethiopia, and subsequent impact on soil erosion and agricultural productivity. The review investigated the various climate smart land management practices and their potential to overcome these challenges. The methodology of the review employed a systematic search and review of relevant literature. A total of fifty one peer reviewed articles published since 2018 were considered for the review. The review identified several key findings: 1) Significant trend of increasing temperature, rainfall variability and extreme events were observed, highlighting their impact on soil erosion and agricultural productivity. 2)The review identified soil and water conservation, integrated soil fertility management, water management, agroforestry and improved livestock management as a key climate smart land management practices. 3) Climate smart land management practices provided multi-faceted benefits, such as reduce soil erosion, improve soil fertility, enhance water retention and increase crop yield to the small holder farmers.4) Successful implementation of the practices resulted in increasing household income and greater resilience to climate crises. The review underscores context specific and gender based intervention supported by policy and institutional support need to be in place for wider adoption of these practices. In conclusion, the review emphasized the contribution of climate smart land management practices to build climate resilient livelihood and sustainable agricultural development in the face of climate crises.