Climate change adaptation in Africa : a microeconomic analysis of livestock choice

Abstract

This paper uses quantitative methods to examine the way African farmers have adapted livestock management to the range of climates found across the African continent. We use logit analysis to estimate whether farmers adopt livestock. We then use three econometric models to examine which species farmers choose: a primary choice multinomial logit, an optimal portfolio multinomial logit, and a demand system multivariate probit. The primary animal model examines the choice of the single species that earns the greatest net revenue on the farm. The optimal portfolio model examines all possible combinations of animals that farmers can choose. The demand system model examines the probability that a farmer will choose a particular species.