Essays on water resources management in the agricultural sector of South Africa: the role of technology, policy and institutions in mitigating farm level water scarcity
type: CreativeWork
description: South Africa is a water-stressed country prone to multi-year droughts and water shortages, with varying impacts on several sectors, including agriculture. Agriculture, as the largest user of the country's freshwater resources, is the most sensitive sector to water scarcity and would be the hardest hit by intensifying climate change, droughts, and water shortages. Yet the agricultural sector has the largest potential to make adjustments and take actions to promote resilience to water scarcity by implementing water conservation, water quality regulation, legitimate allocation, and an appropriate management response in the face of growing water scarcity. This thesis, therefore, provides an understanding of how the agricultural sector of South Africa is responding to the water scarcity problem. Its general objective is to further the stock of knowledge in natural resources management, with special emphasis on water resources management in the agricultural sector. It consists of three core chapters (chapters 2, 3, and 4), alongside the introduction (chapter 1) and conclusion (chapter 5). The first core chapter (Chapter 2) examines the factors that drive farmers' multiple adoption of six water conservation practices (WCPs) and the intensity of their adoption. Using survey data from 555 farmers in the Limpopo River Basin (LRB) of South Africa, a multivariate probit model is estimated to determine these factors, and for the intensity of their adoption, an ordered probit model is estimated. The results show that gender, age, education, and farm size, among other factors, influence the probability and extent of adoption of WCPs. Furthermore, combinations like drip and/or sprinkler irrigations and cover cropping, drip and/or sprinkler irrigations, and intercropping, among other practices, are complements, suggesting the bundling of these WCPs. This chapter provides a clear framework in agriculture not only to prepare farmers to be resilient in the midst of intensifying climate…
abstract: South Africa is a water-stressed country prone to multi-year droughts and water shortages, with varying impacts on several sectors, including agriculture. Agriculture, as the largest user of the country's freshwater resources, is the most sensitive sector to water scarcity and would be the hardest hit by intensifying climate change, droughts, and water shortages. Yet the agricultural sector has the largest potential to make adjustments and take actions to promote resilience to water scarcity by implementing water conservation, water quality regulation, legitimate allocation, and an appropriate management response in the face of growing water scarcity. This thesis, therefore, provides an understanding of how the agricultural sector of South Africa is responding to the water scarcity problem. Its general objective is to further the stock of knowledge in natural resources management, with special emphasis on water resources management in the agricultural sector. It consists of three core chapters (chapters 2, 3, and 4), alongside the introduction (chapter 1) and conclusion (chapter 5). The first core chapter (Chapter 2) examines the factors that drive farmers' multiple adoption of six water conservation practices (WCPs) and the intensity of their adoption. Using survey data from 555 farmers in the Limpopo River Basin (LRB) of South Africa, a multivariate probit model is estimated to determine these factors, and for the intensity of their adoption, an ordered probit model is estimated. The results show that gender, age, education, and farm size, among other factors, influence the probability and extent of adoption of WCPs. Furthermore, combinations like drip and/or sprinkler irrigations and cover cropping, drip and/or sprinkler irrigations, and intercropping, among other practices, are complements, suggesting the bundling of these WCPs. This chapter provides a clear framework in agriculture not only to prepare farmers to be resilient in the midst of intensifying climate…
author: Apio, Alfred Tunyire
keywords: Economics
date published: 2024
date modified: 2026-07-22T22:22:52Z
provider: University of Cape Town
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: School of Economics

PropertyValue
property ID: Handle
value: http://hdl.handle.net/11427/40763