Determinants of soil and water conservation practices in the West Hararghe zone of Eastern Ethiopia

Soil erosion causes a loss of soil fertility, which reduces crop yield and leads to food insecurity. To curb the adversative effects of soil erosion, many efforts have been made at the global, regional, and national levels. However, it is not possible to generalize the factors for the adoption of soil and water conservation (SWC) at the global and regional levels. The current dynamism is of paramount importance to be investigated based on the real scenario of the study site. Accordingly, this study focuses on the objectives of identifying determinant factors to the adoption of SWC practices in the West Hararghe zone, Eastern Ethiopia. A multistage sampling procedure using structured questionnaires was used to select 250 respondents. The collected data were analyzed using a seemingly unrelated bivariate probit model (SUR BVPM). The study identified significant demographic, socioeconomic, institutional, physical, and other factors in the adoption of SWC, such as the use of a productive safety net program (PSNP) and the participation of local farmers in technology design and implementation (PinTDI). For example, using an additional one unit of PSNP services decreases the likelihood of adopting soil and stone bunds by 10.2% and 10.6%, respectively, in ceteris paribus. Our investigation empirically contributes to the prior study and policymakers as the extension system to the implementation of SWC lacks the ground-level context and reality that require appropriate policy to reverse the trend.