Document Type : Research Paper
Authors
1
Associate Professor, Department of Agricultural Economics, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, University of Guilan, Rasht, Iran
2
Graduate Ph. D., Islamic Azad University, Science and Research Branch, Tehran, Iran
3
Assistant Professor, Department of Agricultural Extension and Education, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, Sari Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources University, Sari, Iran
4
Researcher ,Guilan Agricultural and Natural Resources Research and Education Center, Agricultural Research, Education and Extension Organization(AREEO), Rasht, Iran
5
Graduate M. Sc., Department of Agricultural Economics, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, University of Guilan, Rasht, Iran
10.22124/cr.2024.26768.1810
Abstract
Introduction
The concept of resilience focuses on the ability to survive and grow in changing circumstances. Rice production in Guilan province faces many risks in the production system, product and input markets. During the recent years, the decrease of the runoff from the big Sefidroud basin and water scarcity threatens the sustainability of rice production in this province. In this situation, it is necessary to pay attention to the resilience of paddy farmers and to plan properly to identify and prioritize the drivers affecting it. Various dimensions of resilience, including economic, social, technical and physical, were considered in this study. According to these four dimensions, different drivers were identified and prioritized using the opinions of sample experts.
Materials and methods
The research decision tree was designed with the aim of prioritizing the drivers effective on the resilience of paddy farmers after summarizing the findings in previous researches and the opinion of sample experts in the form of four criteria and 19 sub-criteria. The research tool is a pairwise comparison questionnaire, which consists of five comparison groups and 46 pairwise comparisons, and was completed by 10 experts in the field of agricultural resilience at University of Guilan, Guilan Agricultural and Natural Resources Research and Education Center, and Rice Research Institute of Iran. In order to analyze the data related to pairwise comparisons, the grey analytic hierarchy process was used. The algorithm of this process was implemented in eight steps using MATLAB software. The findings of this process were validated based on the inconsistency index value of less than 10%.
Research findings
Among the criteria of the decision tree, the economic criterion with a relative weight of 60.30% was identified as the most important driver of paddy farmers' resilience. Technical criteria with a relative weight of 20.71%, social criteria with a relative weight of 12.44%, and physical criteria with a relative weight of 6.55% are in the second to fourth place, respectively. The economic sub-criteria, including the assets of the paddy farmer household, income and assets of the paddy farm, have been assigned the importance of the first to third priorities, respectively. The final weights related to the three mentioned sub-criteria are 19.43, 17.19 and 12.15 percent, respectively, which indicates the high priority of economic drivers in the resilience of paddy farmers. The results related to the interval of standard deviation from mean showed that in total the above three economic sub-criteria have a very high impact on resilience. Also, the economic sub-criteria of financial affairs and budget and subsidies along with the technical sub-criteria of access to inputs were introduced as drivers with high impact intensity.
Conclusion
The findings of the research indicate the high importance of economic criteria and sub-criteria on the resilience of paddy farmers in Guilan province. Therefore, attention to these drivers and proper planning to improve them should be on the agenda of provincial managers. Adopting the strategy of diversifying farmers' income sources by using the development of tourism and rural handicrafts and focusing on the creation of workshop-service areas in rural areas will be a way forward in this regard. Also, planning to improve the financial capital and assets of paddy farmers as the most important driver of resilience should be considered. The technical criterion is also very important in the resilience of rice farmers. Therefore, it is necessary to improve the access of rice farmers to inputs and promote the use of modified and resistant seeds.
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