Sheriff Ceesay

Background Climate change threatens crop production, food security, and rural livelihoods, particularly where smallholder farmers depend on rain-fed agriculture. The Gambia is exposed to rising temperatures, rainfall variability, droughts, floods, land degradation, and coastal hazards. This study assessed crop farmers' perceptions of climate change, their agricultural practices and adaptation strategies, and the factors associated with the adoption of coping practices. Methods A cross-sectional quantitative study was conducted among 662 crop farmers in the North Bank, Lower River, Central River, and Upper River Regions of The Gambia. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire programmed in KoboToolbox and analysed in IBM SPSS Statistics version 23. Frequencies and percentages were used to summarise the data. The association between perception of climate change and adoption of coping practices was examined using Fisher's exact test and the Pearson chi-square test, with Cramér's V as the effect size. A multivariable binary logistic regression was used to identify factors independently associated with adoption, reported as adjusted odds ratios (AORs). Results Most respondents had observed changes in the local climate over the previous five years (95.3%). The most commonly perceived changes were increased temperature (78.3%), decreased rainfall duration (56.7%), and fewer rainfall events (41.7%). The most commonly perceived impacts were a reduced growing season (55.4%), changes in the timing of rains (54.9%), and pest invasion (35.7%). Groundnuts (67.5%) and cereals (64.0%) were the crops most frequently cultivated. Nearly half of the respondents adopted at least one adaptation strategy (49.0%), of which planting different crop varieties was the most common (70.3%). Adoption was higher among respondents who perceived climate change (50.2%) than among those who did not (25.8%); this association was statistically significant (Fisher's exact test, p = .009) but weak (Cramér's V = .103). In the multivariable analysis (χ2(14) = 46.77, p < .001; Nagelkerke R2 = .091), observation of climate change (AOR = 3.12, p = .012), higher educational level (vocational, AOR = 7.50, p = .003; tertiary, AOR = 2.38, p = .032), and dual household–commercial production (AOR = 1.72, p = .001) were independently associated with adoption, whereas gender, marital status, and age were not. Conclusions Crop farmers widely perceived climate change and reported effects on crop production, yet many were unfamiliar with climate-smart practices and had not adopted adaptation measures. Although awareness was independently associated with adoption, its modest explanatory power indicates that awareness alone is insufficient. Strengthening extension services, climate-information delivery, education and skills training, access to improved seed, and affordable water management may support adaptation, provided that financial and institutional barriers are also addressed.

Despite growing interest in African bioethics, aligning it with Western bioethical principles remains challenging. This integrated review aimed to develop adaptable research bioethics for African socio-cultural contexts. A comprehensive search yielded 7,175 articles of which 68 were selected for analysis. Only three studies analyzed a framework, but none was adapted in the African socio-cultural contexts. From the 68 papers, six themes emerged, leading to the development of the Socio-Cultural Research Ethics Conceptual Model (SCREM). Translating bioethical principles in Africa is essential for culturally sensitive, inclusive, and equitable research. The SCREM framework is a significant and timely contribution to African bioethics, offering a novel, flexible, context-sensitive approach relevant and applicable to the realities of Africa’s diversity. Future research will validate and refine SCREM to address the unique health research ethical challenges in Africa. This work highlights the importance of culturally tailored bioethics in advancing ethical research in Africa and could profoundly impact bioethics research in Africa and globally.

Agricultural systems face increasing challenges due to climate change, necessitating effective adaptation and mitigation strategies. This study investigates smallholder farmers’ perceptions of the efficacy of these strategies in The Gambia, employing a mixed-method approach that includes a perception index (PI), effectiveness score (ES), importance–performance analysis (IPA), and statistical analysis. A structured survey was conducted among 420 smallholder farmers across three agricultural regions. Farmers rated adaptation and mitigation strategies using a Likert scale, and a PI was developed to quantify their responses. The index was 0.66, indicating a moderate level of perceived effectiveness. Additionally, ES was calculated to assess the performance of various strategies, while IPA categorized strategies based on their adoption and perceived impact. Chi-square tests and factor analysis were applied to explore differences in perceptions. The findings reveal that strategies such as crop diversification, pesticide application, irrigation, and the use of inorganic fertilizers are widely adopted and perceived as effective. The IPA matrix identified key strategies needing improvement, particularly those with high importance but low performance. Barriers to adoption include limited financial resources (77%), lack of government support (64%), and insufficient knowledge (52%), with no significant gender-based differences in perceptions. This study underscores the need for policy interventions that integrate farmers’ perceptions to enhance climate resilience. Targeted investments in adaptive technologies, financial support, and knowledge-sharing platforms can improve adoption and effectiveness. This research provides valuable insights into the interplay between farmer perceptions, adaptation strategies, and agricultural sustainability in The Gambia.

Agricultural systems face increasing challenges due to climate change, necessitating effective adaptation and mitigation strategies. This study investigates smallholder farmers' perceptions of the efficacy of these strategies in The Gambia, employing a mixed-method approach that includes a Perception Index (PI), Effectiveness Score (ES), Importance-Performance Analysis (IPA) and statistical analysis. A structured survey was conducted among 420 smallholder farmers across three agricultural regions. Farmers rated adaptation and mitigation strategies using a Likert scale, and a PI was developed to quantify their responses. The index was 0.66, indicating a moderate level of perceived effectiveness. Additionally, ES was calculated to assess the performance of various strategies, while IPA categorized strategies based on their adoption and perceived impact. Chi-square tests and factor analysis were applied to explore differences in perceptions. Findings reveal that strategies such as crop diversification, pesticide application, irrigation, and use of inorganic fertilizers are widely adopted and perceived as effective. The IPA matrix identified key strategies needing improvement, particularly those with high importance but low performance. Barriers to adoption include limited financial resources (77%), lack of government support (64%), and insufficient knowledge (52%), with no significant gender-based differences in perceptions. The study underscores the need for policy interventions that integrate farmers' perceptions to enhance climate resilience. Targeted investments in adaptive technologies, financial support, and knowledge-sharing platforms can improve adoption and effectiveness. This research provides valuable insights into the interplay between farmer perceptions, adaptation strategies, and agricultural sustainability in The Gambia.

Climate risk poses significant challenges to agriculture in The Gambia, especially for smallholder farmers reliant on rain-fed farming. Adaptation efforts will be ineffective unless farmers' perspectives of climate change are understood. The objectives are to examine smallholder farmers’ perceptions of climate risk, identify their adaptation strategies, and examine the factors that influence the adoption of these adaptation strategies at farm and off-level. Data were collected from 420 smallholder farmers across three regions of rural Gambia using a survey and multistage sampling technique. Binary logistic and multivariate probit models were used to analyse the determinants of farmers' decision to adopt adaptation strategies. The empirical result of the binary logistic model indicates that land tenure, access to government support, access to markets, witness to extreme weather events, and climate change perception influenced farmers' choice to adopt adaptation measures. The findings further indicate that female farmers are less likely to adopt adaptation measures. However, the multivariate probit model revealed that age, education, access to extension services, membership of farm groups, and perceived climate change are the main determinants of on-farm adaptation strategies. Off-farm strategies such as petty business are mainly influenced by being female, middle age, and primary education. The results suggest that gender-disaggregated support and targeted policies are necessary to encourage the adoption of adaptation strategies among female farmers. It is recommended that the government enhance access to credit, provide tailored support for women farmers, and improve extension services to foster effective adaptation in rural Gambia.