Farmers’ perceptions on land degradation on cassava sloping land and roles of conservation agriculture practices in Yen Bai province

Citation

Vu T.B., Trieu H.L., Nguyen V.Q., Do T.D.H., Nguyen T.C., Do T.T.H, Bui L.V*. 2020. Farmers’ perceptions on land degradation on cassava sloping land and roles of conservation agriculture practices in Yen Bai province. Science and Technology Journal of Agriculture and Rural Development. 393 (2): 58-65. In Vietnamese. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1zj5ywDmo5xx9_vX5p1hg7XOJqJt1WXGh/view?usp=sharing

Permanent link to share this item: http://crafs.vnua.edu.vn/en/news/handle-154/

Abstract
Land degradation has emerged as a serious problem during the last few decades due to its adverse impact on food security. Among a set of causes, agriculture activities are considered to be the main driver for land degradation. This issue has attracted the attention of many researchers; however, there has been little discussion on land degradation from the lens of farmers. The objectives of the study were, therefore, to explore farmers’ perception on land degradation, its causes, and farmers’ responses in Van Yen district, Yen Bai province. Transect-walks, farmer interviews, focus group discussions and expert interviews were used in the study. Methods used are descriptive analysis (mean, standard deviation, percentage), validation (T test, Fisher’s exact test, Correlation test) and logistic regression were applied in data analysis. Results suggest that farmers perceiving their land degraded were more likely to adopt measures to restore degraded land, including (i) cassava with contoured forage barriers, (ii) cassava intercropped cowpeas (iii) crops/trees changes, and (iv) cassava with contoured cassava stem fences. Further tests show that the information factor has affected farmers’ perception on land degradation.

Key words: Farmers’ perception, land degradation, Yen Bái province.