- University: Czech University Of Life Sciences Prague
- Place of defence: Prague
- Keywords: Agroforestry, carbon payments, climate-smart agriculture, gender dynamics, participation drivers
Abstract
Climate change has adverse effects on agriculture and the livelihoods of over 80% of Kenya’s population, necessitating an urgent shift towards climate-smart systems such as carbon farming. Carbon farming mitigates climate change through soil carbon sequestration, improved soil fertility and yields, and increased resilience. This study examines gender-differentiated motivations, barriers, adoption patterns and determinants of carbon farming among smallholders in Western Kenya. Quantitative survey data were collected from 859 households (427 male-headed and 432 female-headed) across four counties and carbon projects and analyzed using Stata 18. Farmers were primarily motivated by ecological benefits rather than carbon payments. Extension agents and NGOs were key information channels, while a lack of awareness and weak outreach limited participation. Among 23 carbon farming practices, organic fertilizer use, agroforestry, and intercropping were the most widely adopted, with no significant gender differences. Logistic regressions showed that ethnicity and project affiliation negatively influenced agroforestry adoption for female-headed households, while organizational membership increased adoption likelihood among male-headed households. Carbon payments were highly project-dependent and shaped by ethnicity and organizational membership. Age, secondary education and organizational membership significantly influenced the carbon farming participation, while household and land size exerted positive marginal effects for both genders. The findings highlight the need for gender-sensitive and site-specific program design. Strengthening extension services, improving land access and supporting social networks, particularly for women, are critical for scaling adoption. Hybrid payments that combine the provision of inputs with financial incentives could reduce upfront costs. This study has a few limitations, and future research should explore unexplained barriers, the role of education levels, land tenure and ethnic dynamics across genders to ensure equitable and effective carbon farming programs.
