Soil water management practices (terraces) helped to mitigate the 2015 drought in Ethiopia.

ABSTRACT: While the benefits of soil water management practices relative to soil erosion have been extensively documented, evidence regarding their effect on yields is inconclusive. Following a strong El-Niño, some regions of Ethiopia experienced major droughts during the 2015/16 agricultural season. Using the propensity scores method on a nationally representative survey in Ethiopia, this study investigates the effect of two widely adopted soil water management practices - terraces and contour bunds - on yields and assesses their potential to mitigate the effects of climate change. It is shown that at the national level, terraced plots have slightly lower yields than non-terraced plots. However, data support the hypothesis that terraced plots acted as a buffer against the 2015 Ethiopian drought, wh

SUBMITTER: Kosmowski F 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5985715 | biostudies-literature | 2018 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature