Technological Developments and Livelihood of Smallholder Vegetable Farmers in Kampala, District, Uganda

Abstract

: In an effort to minimize the adverse impacts of climate change and variability, technological development is a critical method of adaptation to climate change and variability. The aspect of usage of technological developments by smallholder farmers is either ignored or taken for granted by actors in urban climate change and variability research and development. Measuring technological development in agriculture and further assessing their impacts on livelihood hold the key to strengthening resilience and sustainability of livelihood outcomes. The objective of this article was to assess technological developments practiced by urban farmers in Kampala district and ascertain their effects on smallholder livelihoods. A comprehensive literature review showed that there are various forms of technologies for climate change adaptation including; traditional, modern, soft and hard. The study was conducted in January 2021, using a cross sectional survey of smallholder vegetable farmers in five divisions of Kampala district (Kampala Central, Rubaga, Makindye, Nakawa and Makindye). The study was dominantly field research that employed semi structured questionnaires, interview schedules and observation as techniques of data collection employed in two phased process (explanatory sequential). The study revealed that, technological developments employed by farmers were; use of organic fertilizers, harvesting of rain water, practicing of irrigation. It also showed that some farmers did not use water pans and new crop varieties. Sources of information on climate variability were television, newspapers, radio neighbors and NGOs. And that there is a significant positive and strong relationship between technological improvements and livelihood of smallholder vegetable farmers. Consideration of multiple factors that underlie adaptation decisions, expansion of public and private partnerships is proposed to obviate technological adaptation challenges, using largely farmers’ involvement. These findings reveal that majority of the respondents relied on weather and climate information systems, rain water harvesting, irrigation, new crop varieties and used water pans as technological developments in adaptation to climate variability.