FACTORS AFFECTING ADOPTION OF AGROFORESTRY PRACTICES THE CASE OF NORTH BENCH DISTRICT OF BENCH MAJI ZONE, SOUTH NATION, NATIONALITIES AND PEOPLES' REGIONAL STATE, ETHIOPIA

Information on significant contributions of agroforestry practices for natural resource conservation and factors affecting adoption of these practices by farmers in the North Bench district, Bench Maji Zone, is scant. Therefore, this study was conducted with the objective to assess the factors affecting adoption of agroforestry practices by farm households. Farm household head data on demographic, socio-economic, institutional and psychological and physical factors were collected from 120 randomly selected households in the district. A multi-stage random sampling procedure was employed to select the sample farm household heads. The data which was gathered using a structured interview schedule, focus group discussions and key informants interviews, were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Inferential statistics such as T-test and Chi-square  2   tests were also used to test the hypotheses. The survey result showed that 50.83% and 49.17% of the sampled farm households were adopters and non-adopters of agroforestry practices, respectively. A binary logistic regression model was fitted to analyze the potential variables affecting adoption of agroforestry practices. among 14 explanatory variables included in the logistic model, four of them were significant at less than 1% and 5% probability level, and results of the logistic regression analysis indicates that the households’ educational levels, extension service, distance from nursery site and perception of deforestation respectively affected the adoption of agroforestry practices positively. It is based on empirical evidence gathered from households in the study areas. The study findings showed that education level of the household head, extension service, and distance from nursery site and perception of deforestation affect the adoption of agroforestry technologies in the study areas significantly and with the higher magnitudes of the odds ratios. These variables need to be considered in all the initiatives by government and non-governmental organizations to promote agroforestry as a strategy to realize integrated rural development in the study areas. These findings have policy implications to advance integrated sustainable rural development strategies. The local government in the study areas can use the promotion of agroforestry technologies for multiple purposes, particularly as a tool toward rural poverty alleviation and climate change mitigation measures and strong collaboration among policy makers, researchers and extension providers should be required to harmonise measages to be delivered to farming communities.