Abstract:
Soil is an important resource which provides the required needs for human beings. But its
degradation is one of the major environmental problem challenging agricultural production and
productivity in many parts of Ethiopia. To reverse this problem, soil and water conservation
technologies were introduced in some degraded and food insecure areas mainly through food for
work incentives in the country. Even though a number of soil and water conservation methods
were introduced and practiced, the study area has been experiencing declining soil fertility. This
is due to continuous cropping of farm land, high population pressure, cultivation of highly
inclined and marginal lands and absence of continued use of soil and water conservation
measures. The main objective of the study was to assess factors that determine the adoption of
soil and water conservation practices in Lay Gayent woreda. The data used for this study were
collected through questionnaire, focus group discussion and interview from household heads.
Both primary and secondary data sources were used. Primary data were obtained using
household interview, focus group discussions and key informants’ interviews. Secondary data
was collected from literature, published and unpublished materials. Data were collected and
analyzed from a total of 200 respondents from the selected watersheds. Descriptive statistics
such as frequency mean and percentage were used to describe and characterize respondents’
determinants of adoption of soil and water conservation used by local farmers. The findings have
shown that the majority of sample respondents replied that steep slope cultivation, deforestation
and excessive rainfall were the most important cause of soil erosion in the study area. The result
also showed that soil erosion and land degradation at large are major problem in the study area.
The majority of sample respondents perceived that soil erosion results in a decline in the
productivity of plots by decreasing soil depth and loss of top soils are the consequences of soil
erosion. It reduces the inherent productivity of land, both through the loss of nutrients and
degradation of the soil structure. Most participants of the focus group discussion agreed that the
fertility of soil is decreasing from time to time and in some cases arable lands becomes out of
production. The results of logistic regression model showed that perception of farmers on the
problem of soil erosion, educational level of household head, extension contact, land holding
size, slope of farm land , access to training and land tenure security were among the major
factors that positively and significantly influenced adoption of soil and water conservation
measures in the study area. Whereas, farm size, sex of household heads, family size, age of
