An Assessment of Climate Smart Agricultural Practices and Adaptation Strategies in Mekelle City, Ethiopia

Abstract

Urban agriculture is increasingly recognized as a viable climate adaptation and livelihood strategy in rapidly urbanizing environments, particularly in the context of developing countries facing food insecurity, land scarcity, and environmental stress. Climate change is one of humanity’s biggest problems. Climate smart urban agriculture offers an once-in-a-lifetime chance to adapt to global. UA can improve food security by providing affordable, nutritious alternatives to commercially produced food, especially for economically disadvantaged people. In Ethiopia, cities like Mekelle are experiencing fast urban expansion, often at the expense of productive urban and peri-urban agricultural lands. This study aimed to assess the adoption, contributions, and challenges of Climate-Smart Urban Agriculture (CSUA) practices among urban and peri-urban households in Mekelle City, in light of climate change adaptation and sustainable urban development. A mixed-methods research design was employed, integrating quantitative surveys, logistic regression modeling, and land use/land cover (LULC) analysis based on Landsat imagery from 1984, 2004, and 2025. Descriptive and inferential statistics, including ANOVA and post hoc tests, were used to evaluate socio-economic patterns, and adoption behaviors. A total of 177 randomly chosen urban agricultural households were surveyed using structured questionnaires. The findings reveal significant income inequality, with average household income at 202,725 ETB but with high variance, suggesting unequal access to resources. The average farmland size was 0.78 hectares, with nearly all land under cultivation. LULC analysis indicated that built-up areas expanded sixteen-fold over the study period, reducing agricultural land by 38%. Despite these spatial pressures, urban agriculture contributed positively to food security, employment, poverty reduction, and self-reliance. However, farmers faced critical challenges including lack of access to land, credit, inputs, infrastructure, and institutional support. Logistic regression identified several key CSUA adoption measures with significant influence some positively and others negatively highlighting the complexity of behavioral and contextual drivers. These findings underscore the vital but vulnerable role of CSUA in urban resilience and economic inclusion. They also point to the need for integrated land use planning, improved institutional support, and context-specific interventions to sustain urban farming. Strengthening CSUA adoption not only enhances urban food systems but also supports climate adaptation, social stability, and equitable urban development in post-conflict settings like Mekelle.