Agroecology-Based Local Communities’ Vulnerability to Climate Change in Tembaro District, Southern Ethiopia

Introduction: Ethiopian agricultural system is almost all rain-fed agriculture systems, which is becoming more vulnerable to the impacts of climate change and variability. Identification of farmers’ vulnerability level is important to select appropriate adaptation options to climate change. Thus, this study aimed to examine the vulnerability of communities’ livelihood to climate variability and change based on different agro-ecological zones of the study area using the livelihood vulnerability index–intergovernmental panel on climate change (LVI–IPCC) method. The data was collected from a representative 154 sample households using stratified random sampling techniques. Also, the data was collected from December 2020 to February 2021 by interviewing the selected respondents, which was supplemented with focus group discussion and key informant interviews. Results: There was a difference in vulnerability status between the selected agro-ecologies in the district depending on their livelihood strategies, access to infrastructure, characteristics of the household, and available technologies. The analysis yielded that, the overall vulnerability score for communities in highland agroecology was 0.029, midland agroecology was 0.038, and lowland agroecology was 0.114, which indicates that communities in law land agroecology are more vulnerable relative to midland and high land agro-ecologies. Conclusion: To enhance climate resilience or climate change adaptation strategies for vulnerable communities, there is a need to improve infrastructure facilities, diversification of livelihood strategies, provide improved seed varieties, and enhance soil and water conservation practices giving priority to more vulnerable communities. Decision-makers should plan adaptation in local contexts based on farmers' socioeconomic characteristics and livelihood strategies rather than adopting at international levels.