DETERMINANTS OF ADOPTION OF SOIL AND WATER CONSERVATION MEASURES AND PARTICIPATION OF FARMERS IN WATERSHED DEVELOPMENT IN WEST HARARGHE ZONE: THE CASE OF HABRO DISTRICT

Land degradation is one of the basic problems facing farmers in the Ethiopian highlands and this limits their ability to increase agricultural production and reduce poverty and food insecurity. Even though various soil and water conservation programs and a number of soil and water conservation were introduced to combat land degradation through the ministry of agriculture, on-and-off farm use of these practices remains below expectations in many degraded areas of the highlands of Ethiopia in general and Habro district, West Hararghe zone in particular. The objectives of this study were to assess the determinants of plot level adoption of soil and water conservation measures and participation of farmers in watershed development-common land soil and water conservation activities. Both primary and secondary data were used for this study. The primary data were collected through structured questionnaire from 123 sample households, who were selected from six kebeles of Habro district randomly, who were possessing 206 farm plots. Tobit model was used to identify the determinants of the probability and extent of plot level adoption of improved soil and water conservation measures and participation in watershed development. The results showed that the probability and extent of plot level adoption of improved soil and water conservation measures and participation of farmers in watershed development activities in the study area were influenced by a host of farm and plot level physical, socio-economic, demographic and institutional factors. Results showed that area of cultivated land, slope of farm plot, education level, extension visit, farmers’ perception of erosion problems and land tenure security significantly and positively affected the probability and intensity of plot level adoption of improved soil bund and tree planting, whereas distance of the farm plot from residence and dependency ratio were found to have a significant negative influence. Extension visit, farmers’ perception of land degradation problem and membership in local/community organizations had significant positive influence on the probability and extent of farmers’ participation in watershed development activities, while distance of the communal land from residence, age and participation in off-farm income had significant negative effect. Therefore, the results suggest that plot level and physical factors should be taken into account in designing, promoting and implementation of soil and water conservation practices at farm level and to trigger farmers’ voluntary and active participation in watershed development, besides socio-economic, demographic, personal (attitudinal), and institutional factors need to be considered to enhance sustainable productivity of farming and maintain the natural resource base of the study area through integrated soil and water conservation efforts.