Exploring the impact of drought on farmers’ skills gap and training needs in South Africa

The study investigated the impact of drought on farmers’ preparedness and mitigation practices in South Africa's agricultural sector and identified their skills gaps in drought management and associated training needs. Using a multi-stage purposive sampling method, 192 farmers (120 subsistence and 72 small-scale commercial) were interviewed across dry agroecological zones in the Free State, Eastern Cape, Northern Cape, and Western Cape provinces of South Africa. The results indicate that the primary socioeconomic impacts were reduced household food security (reported by 80% of participants) and increased poverty (≥60%). Environmentally, reduced water availability (>80%) and grazing land deterioration (>64%) were the most cited impacts. Key coping strategies included supplementary feeding (71%) and livestock sales (55%). The results of the ordinal regression analysis indicated that age and gender were associated with a lower capacity to cope with drought, whereas education, income source, and access to extension services enhanced farmers’ coping ability ( P  ≤ 0.05). Additionally, age, education, access to extension services, and agricultural training negatively influenced farmers’ need for drought management training ( P  ≤ .05). Notably, a widespread lack of skills in drought monitoring, early warning systems, and water management was identified across farming types. The study concluded that targeted government interventions should prioritize adequately resourcing extension services and systematically building farmers’ capacities to manage the escalating frequency and severity of droughts.