Factors Influencing the Implementation and Adoption of Sustainable Land Management Practices on Wacaca Mountain in Central Highlands of EthiopiaFactors Influencing the Implementation and Adoption of Sustainable Land Management Practices on Wacaca Mountain in Central Highlands of EthiopiaBayisa et al.

Sustainable land management (SLM) practices play a crucial role in addressing the challenges of land degradation and ensuring the long-term sustainability of agricultural production and natural resources. However, the lack of financial resources, innovative technologies, capacity building, and active involvement of local communities hinder households’ continued implementation of SLM practices. This study examined the determinants of the continued use and choice of SLM practices in three purposefully selected rural kebeles in the Walmera district surrounding Mount Wecaca. Using a multistage sampling procedure, survey data were randomly collected from 180 household heads, supplemented by key informant interviews. The study employed a binary logit model to evaluate the determinants of the decision to continue using SLM practices and a multivariate probit model to analyze households’ choice and simultaneous adoption of SLM practices. The results revealed that the availability of labor, more farming experience, favorable plot topography, proximity of plots to residences, number of livestock holdings, and access to irrigation had a statistically significant positive influence on farmers’ decisions to continuously use SLM practices. Additionally, institutional and technological factors such as frequent extension services, land certification, the participation of farmers in the planning of SLM technologies, and the relevance of introduced SLM technologies had significant positive impacts (p < 0.05) on the continuous use of SLM practices, with marginal effects of 29%, 37.2%, 17.86%, and 16.6%, respectively. The study also revealed that most SLM practices used by rural households at the study site were complementary, with practicing multiple SLM measures on a given plot associated with improved soil fertility and increased crop production value. This improved crop production value may benefit rural households by enhancing their livelihoods. This study also showed that higher education levels significantly decreased the adoption of physical soil and water conservation (SWC) (p < 0.0001) and agroforestry (p < 0.0001) practices, while larger labor sizes significantly increased them (p < 0.0001). Plot slope (p = 0.0001) and size (p < 0.05) were positively correlated with SWC and agroforestry adoption, whereas greater distances from plots significantly decreased adoption across all SLM practices (p < 0.05). Cattle holdings, off-farm activities, higher crop yields, and irrigation access significantly enhanced SLM adoption (p < 0.05). Institutional support, secure land tenure, and positive perceptions of technology and erosion problems also significantly boost adoption (p < 0.05). The study also revealed that the adoption and continued use of sustainable land management (SLM) practices among households are significantly influenced by biophysical and socioeconomic factors, including soil fertility, crop yield, farm income, and educational investments. These findings highlight the need for financial incentives, better extension services and irrigation, educational support, and policies for economic stability and traditional knowledge integration to enhance SLM adoption.