Socio-Economic Determinants of Climate Change Awareness among Communal Farmers in Two Districts of Zimbabwe

Abstract

Climate change poses a serious threat to agriculture-based livelihoods that farmers need to be made aware of. The study objectives of this article were to evaluate and determine socioeconomic factors that have a significant impact on the level of climate change awareness amongst communal farmers in the Seke and Murewa districts of Zimbabwe. To this end, three hundred communal farmers were interviewed in 2011. The respondents had a broad awareness of climate change, though they had a limited understanding of the causes and global nature thereof, and of possible mitigating factors. Factors that were found to have a significant positive impact on climate change awareness were access to agricultural extension programmes and radio, a mobile phone and newspapers; age; level of education; participation in developmental and farmer organisations; and discussions about climate change. However, their position of authority had a significant negative impact.