Rethinking Agriculture in South Africa. On the relation between the vulnerability of farmers, the differentiated impact of institutional arrangements and the actual adaptation choices made.

Abstract

From 2015 to 2017, South Africa has been struck by the worst drought since 1904. Moreover, droughts are expected to worsen in the near future. In light of these changing circumstances, adaptation is vital to ensure food and income security and sustain the rural economy. However, despite the need, the extent to which farmers adapt to drought varies greatly. This variation has been attributed to a diverse range of factors, out of which two are assessed in more detail in this study: the vulnerability context and the differentiated impact of institutional arrangements. This resulted in the following research question: What is the influence of the vulnerability context and the differentiated impact of institutional arrangements on the adaptation choices, such as conservation agriculture, made by farmers in the Western Cape of South Africa?

Through fieldwork that was carried out in the two research areas of Swartland and the southern Cape, during the months of February-May 2017, interview data was gathered. A mixed method case study design was employed, resulting in qualitative and quantitative output. Thirty grain and vegetable producing commercial and small-scale farmers were interviewed. Fifteen of them stated to have implemented the principles of Conservation Agriculture (CA). Conservation Agriculture is a management system that includes a set of principles that is deemed to increase the resilience of farmers in times of drought. The sample selection was aimed at explaining the effects of the capital base and institutions as effectively as possible.

Variation was found in the adaptation choices of commercial and small-scale farmers: commercial farmers were found to be significantly better adapted to drought. Moreover, commercial CA farmers had higher implementation rates of the principles of CA, compared to small-scale CA farmers. Adaptation choices appeared to be influenced by the capital base of the farmer, and more specifically, by human and financial capital. For small-scale farmers, a combination of a lack of property rights to land, a lack of access to sufficient financial resources, and a lack of information and technology were found to constrain their adaptation processes. In order to make agricultural adaptation inclusive, governmental efforts are needed to increase the adaptive capacity of the most vulnerable farmers. Improving information provision on adaptation, and Conservation Agriculture specifically, would be a valuable start.