EFFECTS OF LAND FRAGMENTATION AND CROP DIVERSITY ON SMALLHOLDERS’ FARM INCOME; CASE OF KISII COUNTY, KENYA

Abstract

With global climate change becoming evident across the continent, agriculture has suffered greatly due to the effects of global warming. Erratic weather conditions and sporadic rainfall patterns which are unpredictable have led to the compromise of food security especially in areas where farmers rely on rain-fed agriculture. The effects of climate change have led to the failure of crops in the field compounded by uncertainty in agricultural planning hence affecting farmer’s income across the agricultural value chain. This study conceptualized land fragmentation as the production of different crops in different geographical location by a single farmer. A 3 Stage Least Squares model (3SLS) to estimate how land fragmentation and crop diversity affect smallholder farmers’ income was employed. To measure land fragmentation, the Januszewki index (JI) was adopted while crop diversity was captured using the Entropy index method. The results show that land fragmentation has a positive effect on crop diversity. Farm crop diversity affects positively the level of farm income. The findings suggest that land fragmentation, as much as it has had a negative view on its effect, it can be of positive impact especially on farming households with small farms.