This paper evaluated expert opinions on farmers' perception about climate change, Climate Smart Agriculture (CSA) practices and their effects on Irish potato production in Kenya. The study focused on different coping strategies preferred by experts and currently used by farmers. Delphi approach was used to elicit information from 22 experts from different Irish potato and climate research organizations in Kenya. The study found that, majority of farmers were aware of climate change and perceived it to affect Irish potato production in Kenya. Most experts opined that key climate change effects experienced by the farmers in Kenya included new strains of pest and diseases (91%), low rainfall (68%), instability in production (68%), inability to plan for production (64%) and destruction of crops by floods (59%) causing an overall decline in potato yield (86%). Despite high level of farmers’ awareness (76%) and benefits (91%), the study found low implementation levels(≤ 40%) on most of the CSA practices. Furthermore, the assessment revealed that the top 5 CSA practices preferred by both experts and farmers are the use of improved crop varieties (85%), irrigation (64%), efficient use of agrochemicals (54%), early land preparation (51%), diversified crop production (45%), efficient use of inorganic fertilizer (45%) and changing planting dates (45%). The study revealed that the most preferred CSA practices focused on increased production. The study calls for changes in agricultural policy to appropriately resolve the majority of CSA practices adoption and adaptation concerns in Kenya.

1. Assessment of Experts’ Opinion on Irish Potato Farmers Perceptions about Climate Change and the Use of Climate Smart Agriculture Adaptation Strategies in Kenya
Assessment of Experts’ Opinion on Irish Potato Farmers
Perceptions about Climate Change and the Use of Climate
Smart Agriculture Adaptation Strategies in Kenya
John Robert Ouko Ogola1*, Kevin Okoth Ouko2, Thomas Kitinya Kirina3 and Bram Droppers4
1,3,4Wageningen University & Research, Water Systems and Global Change Group, Department of Environmental
Sciences, P.O. Box 47, 6700 AA Wageningen, The Netherlands
2Jaramogi Oginga Odinga University of Science and Technology, Department of Agricultural Economics and Agribusiness
Management, School of Agricultural and Food Sciences, P.O Box 210-40601, Bondo, Kenya
This paper evaluated expert opinions on farmers' perception about climate change, Climate Smart
Agriculture (CSA) practices and their effects on Irish potato production in Kenya. The study
focused on different coping strategies preferred by experts and currently used by farmers. Delphi
approach was used to elicit information from 22 experts from different Irish potato and climate
research organizations in Kenya. The study found that, majority of farmers were aware of climate
change and perceived it to affect Irish potato production in Kenya. Most experts opined that key
climate change effects experienced by the farmers in Kenya included new strains of pest and
diseases (91%), low rainfall (68%), instability in production (68%), inability to plan for production
(64%) and destruction of crops by floods (59%) causing an overall decline in potato yield (86%).
Despite high level of farmers’ awareness (76%) and benefits (91%), the study found low
implementation levels(≤ 40%) on most of the CSA practices. Furthermore, the assessment
revealed that the top 5 CSA practices preferred by both experts and farmers are the use of
improved crop varieties (85%), irrigation (64%), efficient use of agrochemicals (54%), early land
preparation (51%), diversified crop production (45%), efficient use of inorganic fertilizer (45%) and
changing planting dates (45%). The study revealed that the most preferred CSA practices focused
on increased production. The study calls for changes in agricultural policy to appropriately
resolve the majority of CSA practices adoption and adaptation concerns in Kenya.
Keywords: Adaptation, Assessement, Climate Smart Agriculture, Experts’ Opinion, Perception
INTRODUCTION
Climate change is currently a global challenge that affects
various economic sectors differently including agriculture,
food security and livelihood of millions of people (Field et
al., 2014). However, the agriculture sector is the most
affected due to its high vulnerability to climate change
(Parker et al., 2019; Sridevi et al., 2014). Adaptation to
climate change impacts on agriculture has become a
major concern to various stakeholders in Kenya and sub-
Saharan Africa (SSA) at large, with special emphasis on
how to assist farmers in improving their adaptive capacity
(Limantol et al., 2016). Currently, Irish potato (Solanum
tuberosum L.) which is the fourth most produced and third
most consumed crop is under threat for low production
despite being seen as one of the crops that will help to
reduce food insecurity crisis globally (Liu et al., 2014;
Muthoni & Mbiyu, 2017; Okello et al., 2016). Irish potato
yields are projected to decrease by 22% in SSA due to its
susceptibility to both rainfall and temperature, thus leading
to food insecurity (Spore, 2015 ; Ndegwa et al., 2020).
*Corresponding Author: John Robert Ouko Ogola,
Wageningen University & Research, Water Systems and
Global Change Group, Department of Environmental
Sciences, P.O. Box 47, 6700 AA Wageningen, The
Netherlands.
E-mail: robertojohn57@gmail.com
Research Article
Vol. 7(1), pp. 967-977, March, 2021. © www.premierpublishers.org, ISSN: 2167-0477
Journal of Agricultural Economics and Rural Development

2. Assessment of Experts’ Opinion on Irish Potato Farmers Perceptions about Climate Change and the Use of Climate Smart Agriculture Adaptation Strategies in Kenya
Ogola et al. 968
In Kenya, Irish potato production has exhibited a general
decrease in yield from 21.5 tons/ha to 8.6 tons/ha between
2008 and 2018, majorly contributed by climate change
effects as in Table 1. Therefore, climate-related risks in
Irish potato production need to be assessed to identify
potential mitigation and adaptation strategies to improve
its productivity. For any effective adaptation and mitigation
policy, the decisions and strategies in addressing the
impact of climate change on farmers must take into
account farmers’s knowledge and perception of climate
change (Fosu-Mensah et al., 2012).
There are many approaches that have been
recommended for adapting and mitigating the impacts of
climate change on agricultural production. One of the very
promising approaches are the Climate smart agriculture
(CSA) practices; which integrates the benefits of a
sustainable increase in agricultural productivity, adaptation
and building of resilient agricultural and food security
systems, as well as the reduction of Green House Gas
(GHG) emissions from agricultural activities ( Abegunde et
al., 2020). However, these CSA practices' success
depends on farmers' knowledge of how they perceive and
respond to the type of risk involved (Masson-Delmotte et
al., 2018; Soubry et al., 2020). Climate change perception
is strongly related to the degree to which climate-induced
risks and opportunities affect farmers and their livelihoods,
their responses and adaptation strategies based on this
perception (Ndamani & Watanabe, 2015). Based on Asrat
and Simane (2017) and Yesuf et al. (2009), adaptation at
the farm-level involves two stages: perceiving a change in
climate and deciding whether to adopt or not (including
which adaptation strategy to use). This study defines
farmer perception as subjective, informing appropriate
reactions based on explicit and tactics knowledge about a
risk's characteristics and severity (Soubry et al., 2020).
Table 1: Irish potato production levels in Kenya
between 2008 and 2018
Year Production in
tons
Area in ha Yield in tons/ha
2008 2,900,000 135,000 21.5
2009 2,299,086 120,246 19.1
2010 2,725,936 121,542 22.4
2011 2,365,263 123,390 19.2
2012 2,915,067 143,325 20.3
2013 2,192,885 152,007 14.4
2014 1,626,027 115,604 14.1
2015 1,963,495 133,532 14.7
2016 1,335,883 145,967 9.2
2017 1,519,870 192,341 7.9
2018 1,870,375 217,315 8.6
Source: (FAOSTAT, 2018)
This study focuses on farmers' perceptions that can be
incorporated into Irish potato production and climate
change adaptation and how farmers assess and react to
climate risks. Current studies of this kind either focused on
different crops or were conducted in other countries. Thus,
there are limited studies on farmers’ perception about
climate change and climate variability in Irish potato
production in Kenya hence this study bridged this
knowledge gap. Further, despite the serious global
concerns and appeal to implement Sustainable
Development Agenda 2030, the task for widespread
adoption of CSA-practices seems challenging in
developing countries including Kenya (Mazhar et al.,
2021), hence perception remains of key concern to policy
makers. In SSA, several studies have shown that farmer
perception of climate change positively influence the
adoption of CSA practices; South Africa (Abegunde et al.,
2020), Kenya (Wamalwa, 2017), Ethiopia (Agegnehu et
al., 2014) and Egypt (Froehlich & Al-Saidi, 2018). This
research assessed CSA experts' experiences on how Irish
potato farmers perceive climate change and climate
variability (CCV) and what farmers have reported as
adverse effects of climate change over the years in Kenya.
The study objective was answered by the following
questions a) Do farmers perceive CCV to affect Irish potato
farming in Kenya? b) What are the effects of CCV on
potato production and farmer livelihoods? c) Which CSA
practices are Irish potato farmers aware of and practice?
d) Which top 5 most CSA practices are currently used by
farmers versus expert preferred practices to adapt to
climate change effects e) What benefits are farmers aware
of and how are they affecting the CSA practices
implementation?
METHODOLOGY
Experts Selection
Multi-stakeholder participation approach was used in this
study. Selected stakeholders were from varied
geographical areas and professions. However, due to
COVID-19 outbreak, it was challenging to gather all the
contributors in one place to discuss and get a consensus
on the CSA practices. The study purposively sought
individuals from academic, non-governmental
organizations (NGO) and government institutions (Hsu &
Sandford, 2007; Lee et al., 2013; Mohammadi et al., 2020).
Purposive sampling involved identifying and selecting
experts, especially competent and familiar with climate
change and Irish potato value chain issues (Palinkas et al.,
2015). This study employed the Delphi method of
exploring the expert’s opinions on farmer preferences of
CSA practices. Delphi method was preferred since there
was no consensus on the required number of participants
(Roy et al., 2014). The statistical sample consisted of 22
experts selected by the snowball sampling method. In
adopting Roy et al., (2014) criteria, three requirements
were established for the selection of experts; i) experts
with 10 years of relevant professional experience (ii)
individuals who have been directly involved in Irish potato
research, expansion, management and marketing for
atleast 5 years (iii) individuals who have been engaged or

3. Assessment of Experts’ Opinion on Irish Potato Farmers Perceptions about Climate Change and the Use of Climate Smart Agriculture Adaptation Strategies in Kenya
J. Agric.Econs. Rural Dev. 969
consulted for a minimum of 10 cumulative years in
agricultural policy making in the potato value chain within
the government or private sector.
Participating Experts
A total of 28 CSA experts were contacted; however, 22
CSA experts responded to the invitation to join the study
and completed the questionnaire and the interviews. Six of
the selected CSA experts declined, citing time constraints,
resulting in a response rate of 78.6 %. The expert
respondents came from different Non-Government
Organizations (NGOs) and International research
institutions such as Consultative Group on International
Agricultural Research (CGIAR) (18%), Agrico East Africa
Ltd (5%), International Potato Center (CIP) (5%), and
Netherlands Development Organisation (SNV) (18%). The
government institutions included the Ministry of Agriculture
(MOA) (18%), National Potato Council of Kenya (NPCK)
(18%), Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Services
(KEPHIS) (5%), Kenya Agricultural and Livestock
Research Organization (KALRO) (5%) and Jomo Kenyatta
University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT) (9%)
with expert knowledge in the potato value chain and
climate change. Figure 1 shows the distribution of experts
from various institutions who were engaged during the
process of data collection.
Figure 1. Experts distribution
Delphi Questionnaire Structure
According to Roy et al. (2014), the Delphi method usually
starts with an open-ended questionnaire. However, Kuo &
Chen (2008) opines that the first round of the Delphi
method should start with a literature review to adequately
consider all of the issues that concern interviewees. In
many cases, the Delphi method has been used, and its
implementation in different fields also developed for
determining factors (Rasouli et al. 2009). Correspondingly
this study carried out a review of the literature followed by
conducting the Delphi survey to achieve expert
consensus. Each round was based on the outcome of the
preceding ones.
In the first round of proofing, experts received a list of CSA
adaptation strategies and attributes. The literature review
drew the initial list of CSA adaptation strategies and
experts were asked to make any adjustments to the initial
list where necessary. The plan was for experts to make
any adjustment proposed before evaluating the CSA
adaption strategies in terms of their perceived impacts
through scoring of the three attributes (production,
adaptation and mitigation) and describing the scores
(Appendix 1).
Questionnaires were prepared in English language using
Google forms and consisted of the following structure:
I. Personal details: This was with an emphasis on the
professional activity and organization of the
participants.
II. Perception about climate change, its effects on
farming and influence on the adoption of climate-
smart practices
III. The extent of implementation of the CSA adaptation
practices
The questionnaire assessed the views of experts on how
farmers perceive climate change, its effects on farming
and influence on the adoption of climate-smart practices.
Experts were further asked to rate the various CSA
adaptation methods based on their attributes in this study.
The list of priority attributes for the Delphi study began with
selecting CSA adaptation strategies and the appropriate
attributes. However, similarity of attributes was also
considered to minimize the number of management
attributes needed to be included in the joint study
(Appendix 1).
Conducting Delphi Survey
In conducting the interviews, the researcher first met with
the expert participants online through Zoom software and
explained the goals and objectives of the research. This
provided an avenue to ask the experts to take the right time
to do the interview, thus providing a brief explanation of the
research topic. During the interview, the researcher asked
experts a few questions and requested responses
(Mohammadi et al., 2020). Before the main interview,
questionnaires were pretested with three experts in
September 2020 for clarity and editing. No major
modifications were suggested; hence the three completed
questionnaires were included in the analysis. Potential
CSA experts were contacted and if they agreed to
participate, detailed information about the study was
provided and the questionnaires were sent via electronic
mail. The data collection process took place between
September 2020 and October 2020 via email, Google
forms, Zoom and telephone calls. The Delphi online was
implemented to enhance questionnaire performance by
facilitating the process and saving experts’ time. The
combination of the web-based survey platform and the
questionnaire, simplified statistical analysis and avoided
the requirements of paper-based surveys, restricted data
input and computational errors often recorded in Delphi
studies (Cam et al. 2002).

4. Assessment of Experts’ Opinion on Irish Potato Farmers Perceptions about Climate Change and the Use of Climate Smart Agriculture Adaptation Strategies in Kenya
Ogola et al. 970
One week after receipt of a questionnaire, the participants
were asked to provide their feedbacks however, updates
were sent to facilitate feedback from as many participants
as possible. Extra time to complete a questionnaire was
considered for some experts. Therefore, the realistic
timeframe for the first round was two weeks and for the
second round another two weeks. Experts' interviews were
conducted to provide the researcher with the knowledge of
currently evolving new CSA strategies. Experts also
provided in-depth information on potential technical
advances or activities, the effectiveness, economic
performance, and the effect on CSA's three pillars.
Furthermore, it also helped where the required information
was not found in any literature or other applicable sources.
In general, expert elicitation was done through semi-
structured questionnaires and interviews. This was to
assess the subjective judgments of experts working in
Kenya who were familiar with the subject on technical
topics at a given point in time (Hagerman et al., 2010).
RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS
Farmer’s perception about climate change and climate
variability effects on Irish potato farming in Kenya
All the 22 interviewed CSA experts agreed that farmers
perceive CCV to be affecting Irish potato production in
Kenya. The results were based on practical experiences
and the realities farmers face in their daily interaction with
the environment as they carry out farming activities. The
views were attributed to various indicators farmers
reported and expert observations in the past ten years on
CCV. Majority of CSA experts indicated that farmers
experienced a reduction in Irish production because of
changes in rainfall patterns, floods, dry spells, and
prolonged droughts coupled with increased temperatures,
the emergence of pests and diseases, fragile agricultural
lands and varietal turnovers. These findings are in
agreement with those of Dossou-aminon et al., (2014),
who found that similar effects of climate change were
observed by producers in their study.
Adaptation to climate change is a two-step process that
requires that farmers first perceive climate change and
then respond to the changes in the second step (Asrat &
Simane, 2018; Kurgat et al., 2020). Correspondingly,
Singh et al., (2018) emphasized in a study done by Adger
et al., (2009) that farmers were observant of climatic
variability impacts more than the long-term climate
change. Changes were noted in the quantum, inception
and rainfall distributions, increases in minimum and
maximum temperature levels, decreases in crop yield and
depletion of the groundwater. Thus, farmers resorted to
adaptation methods, such as drought-resistant seed
varieties, watershed management techniques, crop
insurance, and involvement in non-farm activities and work
guarantee schemes for addressing and coping with
climatic variability. Macharia et al. (2012) evaluated farmer
perceptions and adaptation to climate change in Naro
Moru and Nairutia areas (both in Nyeri North District) and
Matanya in Lamuria Division Laikipia East District, Kenya.
Farmers identified erratic and low rainfalls, frequent
droughts and dust storms, low crop yields and high day
and low night time temperature as the leading indicators of
climate change and variability. Moreover, Muthoni et al.,
(2017) identified pests' emergence (aphids, potato tuber
moth and leaf miners) and diseases such as late blight,
bacterial wilt, and viruses to increase with the effect of
climate change and variability.
Effects of climate change and variability on Irish
potato production, food security and farmer
livelihoods
Figure 2 indicates that the majority (> 55%) of the CSA
experts affirmed that climate change's impact increases
chances of crop failure. The overall decline in crop yield
(86%) leads to reduced incomes for the farmers and
fluctuating prices affecting the variable costs. The
emergence of new strains of pest and diseases (91%) in
potato farming results in reduced income due to heavy
investment or over expenditure in farm inputs such as seed
and pest control products. Moreover, inability to plan
farming activities (64%) resulted in farmers incurring
losses through poor yields and delayed planting season for
potato production. Lastly, erratic and low rainfall (68%)
currently experienced in potato growing areas affects soil
moisture leading to either flooding or wilting of crops
respectively. The distribution of rainfall is an important
factor for crop production; poor rainfall distribution leads to
low yield, reducing incomes for farmers. The weather
changes within the season affect the production quantities
making potatoes very expensive to consumers for 7 out of
12 months in a year.
Several studies in Africa (Fisher et al., 2015; Fosu-Mensah
et al., 2012; Gnangle et al., 2012; Juana et al., 2013;
Muzamhindo et al., 2015) and around the world have
already yielded similar results. The main changes reported
by experts to affect Irish potato production were rainfall
disturbances (rainfall delays, early cessation, uneven
rainfall distribution etc.), prolonged droughts coupled with
increased temperatures, the emergence of pests and
diseases, fragile agricultural lands and varietal turnovers
and other extreme events such as floods. Similar findings
have been observed in Kenya (Gebreeyesus et al., 2017),
Benin (Agossou et al., 2012) and Nigeria (Oyekale &
Oladele, 2012).

5. Assessment of Experts’ Opinion on Irish Potato Farmers Perceptions about Climate Change and the Use of Climate Smart Agriculture Adaptation Strategies in Kenya
J. Agric.Econs. Rural Dev. 971
Figure 2: Experts response on the effects of climate
change on Irish potato farming
According to figures 3 & 4 respectively, 32% and 27% of
the experts believed CSA practices contributed very little
to household food security and income. The experts hinted
at farmers' concerns on reduction level in Irish potato yield
quantity and quality, increased cost of production due to
spraying of fungicides to control diseases. Moreover, the
experts highlighted that potato farmers recycle their seeds,
the most common variety, 'shangi', which has a dormancy
of less than 30 days and this leads to the spread of potato
diseases. It can be concluded from the findings that
farmers are currently suffering from losses attributed to the
effects of CCV and this has an impact on their household
food sufficiency, security and income.
Figure 3. Expert responses on CSA Practices
contribution to household food security
Figure 4. Expert responses on CSA Practices
contribution to household income
Awareness and Practice of CSA by Irish Potato
farmers
The study showed that on average, 76% of the experts
believed that farmers were aware of the listed CSA
practices. However, the implementation of a majority of
CSA practices showed a lower uptake, averagely 40%,
except for farmer knowledge sharing (91%), membership
to farmer association (82%), early land preparation (73%),
changing planting dates (73%), use of organic fertilizer
(64%) and use of improved crop varieties (55%) as in
figure 5. Experts argued that some of the exceptional CSA
practices that do not require money, some having
preference advantages over other practices and those with
less commitment from farmers would be practiced more.
This study showed that despite a high level of farmer
awareness on most CSA practices, the implementation
level still falls low, i.e., averagely ≤ 40%. Similarly, several
studies across SSA also indicate a high level of awareness
with low adoption of CSA practices due to various resource
constraints and infrastructural challenges (Kangogo et al.,
2020; Kurgat et al., 2020; Nyasimi et al., 2017; World Bank
& CIAT, 2015). Previous studies (Kangogo et al., 2020;
Kurgat et al., 2020) found that adoption of the CSA
practices is increasing in Kenya though the level still falls
below 50% implementation on most of the practices
investigated. Ali (2021) notes that awareness of induced
effects of climate risks enables farmers to adopt
adaptation strategies to build resilience.
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
new strains of
pests and
diseases
Decline in crop
yield
low rainfall
(wilting of crops)
Instability in
production
Inability to plan
farming activities
Destruction of
crop due to
flooding
Reponses
(%)
Climate Change Effects
Effects of Climate change on Irish potato Farming
45%
23%
32%
Expert responses on CSA Practices
contribution to household food security
A lot Somewhat A little

6. Assessment of Experts’ Opinion on Irish Potato Farmers Perceptions about Climate Change and the Use of Climate Smart Agriculture Adaptation Strategies in Kenya
Ogola et al. 972
Figure 5: Expert responses to Irish potato farmer CSA
Awareness and Practice
Adaptive CSA Practices currently used by farmers
versus preferred by the experts.
The research has shown that Irish potato farmers are
worried about their livelihoods and are taking climate
change issues with great concern. The farmers not only
react to CCV but also respond to changes and the worst
they anticipate. The study showed 68% of the respondents
agreed that climate change influences the adoption of CSA
practices (Figure 6). Moreover, the analysis on the
frequency of the experts' opinion on CSA practices
currently used by farmers revealed that use of improved
crop varieties (73%), irrigation (64%), efficient use of
inorganic fertilizers (59%), early land preparations (50%)
and changing planting dates (45%) were the most popular
practices among Irish potato farmers. In contrast, access
to weather information, crop insurance, agroforestry,
diversified crop production and access to market
information were the least popular practiced CSA practices
among Irish potato farmers (Figure 7). The experts
explained that CSA practices were being used because of
their perceived benefits farmers were aware of and erratic
climate variability in their areas.
On the other hand, experts preferred improved varieties,
efficient use of agrochemicals, early land preparation,
diversified crop production efficient use of inorganic
fertilizer as the most important CSA practices farmers
should embrace for climate change adaptation. However,
agroforestry, mulching, farmer knowledge sharing, use of
live barriers, and cover crops were least preferred by
experts as shown by frequencies in Figure 8.
Previous studies (Kimani & Bhardwaj, 2015; Mutunga et
al., 2017; Ndambiri et al., 2012) reported that farmers
adopt different crop varieties, change of planting dates,
crop diversification, changing land area under cultivation.
Moreover, this also entailed increased use of irrigation,
increased use of fertilizers and pesticides, increased use
of soil and water of conservation technologies, and
mulching and manure adoption to adapt to CCV.
Asayehegn et al.(2017) , found that farmers who were
aware of climate changes in the long term essentially
changed the varieties depending on the expectation of the
rainfall duration. Additionally, farmers adjusted planting
and harvesting time, fitting them with the onset and offset
of rainfall and looked for alternative income sources such
as mixed farming of crops and livestock.
Figure 6: Respondents (%) on CC attributes
influencing adoption
Figure 7: Order of CSA Practices currently used by
farmers
Figure 8: Order of CSA practices preferred by experts.
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Response
(%)
CSA Practices
Current CSA Awareness and Practice Scenarios
Aware(Yes) Practice (Yes )
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
Response
(%)
CSA Practices
CSA Currently Being Employed by Irish Potato Farmers
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
Responses(%)
CSA Practices
Expert Ranked CSA Most Important to Irish Potato Farmers

7. Assessment of Experts’ Opinion on Irish Potato Farmers Perceptions about Climate Change and the Use of Climate Smart Agriculture Adaptation Strategies in Kenya
J. Agric.Econs. Rural Dev. 973
Benefits of Awareness of CSA Practices
The use of CSA practices has been attached to various
benefits for the farmers and the environment. The study
found that majority of experts (91%) revealed that farmers
were aware of the benefits associated with the
implementation of CSA practices (Figure 9 & 10). Experts
argued that some adaptation practices such as improved
crop varieties have helped reduce total losses due to pests
and diseases and increased yields for enhanced food
security and income. Diversification has ensured food
availability to the households, short-season crops have
closed the hunger gap periods, and production through
irrigation enables farmers to produce off-season, making
them get better prices, hence more income, among other
benefits.
Figure 9: Expert response to farmer awareness to CSA
Perceived Benefits
Figure 10: Expert response level to each CSA
practices perceived benefit
CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
This study aimed at assessing experts' opinions on how
the farmer's perception is affecting the use of CSA
practices. The study result generally reveals that farmers
perceive climate change and variability which therefore
necessitate policy intervention. Perception strongly affects
how farmers deal with climate-induced risks and
opportunities. The precise nature of their behavioral
responses to these perceptions shapes adaptation
options, the process involved and adaptation outcomes.
The study revealed that understanding the importance of
farmers’ perception is extremely important in developing
adaptation plans to tackle the increasing effects of climate
variability and shock. Enhancing perception and scaling up
climate change adaptation technologies requires a shared
vision of all potential stakeholders and public-private
partnerships. Further results showed that among the 19
CSA identified, the top 5 selected were from two CSA
strategy groups; the crop management and risk reduction
groups. Secondly, there was a low CSA practice adoption,
average ≤ 40%. Low adoption was prevalent on most CSA
practices despite farmers' awareness of climate change
effects on Kenya's Irish potato farming. CSA practices
selected and assessed in this study have further socio-
economic and cultural limitations that may prevent
adoption. To increase agricultural production and
decrease food insecurity and poverty levels in developing
economies, it requires research and the use of CSA
technologies to adapt to the impact of CCV. However,
there are some discrepancies about what kind of CSA
practices for developing countries are ideally suited. As the
results indicated, some practices farmers are using were
different from those preferred by the experts. This was
because these CSA technologies' suitability also depends
on other circumstances of the farmers and ecological
zones, rendering no standard solution. For example,
changing planting dates may be an easier option for
farmers who do not have other alternatives such as
irrigation for continuous production from the onset of the
planting season.
In line with a range of findings in this study the following
strategies are the policy recommendations:
1. There is a need for the policymakers to note farmers’
concerns regarding climate variability and their
responses. Enhanced perception is a necessary step
that needs to precede the adoption of effective
adaptation mechanisms; hence, policymakers need to
carefully consider these ever increasing challenges to
design and execute appropriate policy responses.
2. Given that climate change and variability are
increasingly becoming a reality in Africa, climate-smart
agriculture practices such as small-scale irrigation
farming need to be given emphasis. National and
regional policies on small-scale irrigation farming that
will ensure that farmers do not suffer a total loss of
their agricultural produce due to climate variability and
change should be formulated. Solution for farmers to
invest in appropriate and sustainable approaches
such as solar-driven, and drip irrigation systems is
essential. Additionally, long-term soil and water
conservation structures such as terraces to reduce the
91%
9%
Farmer Awareness
aware Not aware
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Responses
(%)
CSA Practices Benefits
Awareness of Perceived Benefits of CSA Adoption by Irish Potato
Farmers

8. Assessment of Experts’ Opinion on Irish Potato Farmers Perceptions about Climate Change and the Use of Climate Smart Agriculture Adaptation Strategies in Kenya
Ogola et al. 974
loss of fertile soils and water pans to store water to be
used during droughts for irrigation would help solve the
trade-offs among CSA practices.
3. To reduce the vulnerability of farmers’ to climate-
related risks, the government needs to improve
farmers´ access to extension services, climate
information, input and output market, and education.
Therefore, promising holistic strategies to boost CSA
practices' uptake should focus on increasing access to
information through innovative dissemination
pathways. This will help reduce uncertainties among
Irish potato farmers on the uptake of CSA
practices. Complimentary services such as climate
information, agro-advisories and financing also need
to be strengthened. Through the Ministry of
Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries, the government
should support smallholder farmers with an accurate
and reliable weather update from the meteorology
department to plan their farming activities accurately.
Furthermore, building existing farmers' capacity
through increasing on-farm farmer training will
increase CSA practices' uptake in Irish potato farming
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Appendix 1: Expert Ranked CSA practices
CSA Practices Average Rank
Use of improved crop varieties 4.3 1
Efficient use of chemicals (pesticides and herbicides) 2.7 2
Early land preparations 2.5 3
Diversified crop production 2.3 4
Efficient use of inorganic fertilizers 2.2 5
Use of legumes in crop rotation 2.2 6
Changing planting dates 2.2 6
Use of organic fertilizers 2.0 8
Irrigation 1.9 9
Received education/training on how to access weather information by an organization 1.7 10
Crop insurance 1.6 11
Get access to information of market prices of produce & inputs 1.5 12
Establishment of Ridges, farm terracing, hedges, stone lines 1.5 13
Belong to farmer associations 1.5 13
Minimum tillage 1.3 15
Agroforestry 1.3 16
Mulching 1.1 17
Share one-on-one information with colleagues (Farmer-to- farmer knowledge sharing) 1.1 18
Use of cover crops 0.9 19

11. Assessment of Experts’ Opinion on Irish Potato Farmers Perceptions about Climate Change and the Use of Climate Smart Agriculture Adaptation Strategies in Kenya
J. Agric.Econs. Rural Dev. 977
Appendix 2: Farmer Current CSA Practices
CSA Practices Respondents Rank Percentage Rank
Use of improved crop varieties 16 73% 1
Irrigation 14 64% 2
Efficient use of inorganic fertilizers 13 59% 3
Early land preparations 11 50% 4
Changing planting dates 10 45% 5
Belong to farmer associations 7 32% 6
Mulching 7 32% 6
Efficient use of Agrochemicals 6 27% 8
Use of legumes in crop rotation 4 18% 9
Establishment of Farm water conservation structures 4 18% 10
Use of organic fertilizers 3 14% 11
Farmer-to- farmer knowledge sharing 3 14% 12
Access weather information & trainings 2 9% 13
Crop insurance 2 9% 13
Agroforestry 2 9% 15
Diversified crop production 1 5% 16
Access market information 1 5% 17
Accepted 24 February 2021
Citation: Ogola JRO, Ouko KO, Kirina TK, Droppers B (2021). Assessment of Experts’ Opinion on Irish Potato Farmers
Perceptions about Climate Change and the Use of Climate Smart Agriculture Adaptation Strategies in Kenya. Journal of
Agricultural Economics and Rural Development, 7(1): 967-977
Copyright: © 2021: Ogola et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons
Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original
author and source are cited.