Preparing for, coping with and bouncing back after shocks. A nuanced resilience assessment for smallholder farms and farmers in Northern Ghana

Abstract

Smallholder farmers in Northern Ghana regularly face shocks, challenging the sustainability of their farms and livelihoods. Di ff erent farm households and household members may be di ff erently a ff ected and respond with di ff erent coping strategies. We combined whole-farm modelling and farmer consultations to investigate the vulnerability, bu ff er and adaptive capacity of three farm types in Northern Ghana towards severe climate, economic and social shocks. We further assessed intra-household di ff erences in respective risk mitigation and coping strategies. Our model results indicate that the drought shock would most severely a ff ect all farm types, drastically reducing their operating pro fi ts and soil organic matter balance. The medium resource endowed farm was most a ff ected by shocks, but all farm types could enhance their capacity to recover by adopting technology packages for sustainable intensi fi cation. Gendered coping strategies included livestock sales, post-harvest storage, activating social networks, rice processing and the collection, processing and sales of wild nuts and fruits. Farmers reported to aim at becoming more resilient by increasing their herd size and expanding their farmland, thereby risking to increase rather than reduce the pressure on natural resources. New questions arise concerning thecarryingcapacityoflocalecosystemsandresilienceatcommunityandlandscapelevel