Valuation of Soil Conservation Practices in Adwa Woreda, Ethiopia: A Contingent Valuation Study

Soil degradation is one of the most serious environmental problems in the high­lands of Ethiopia. The prevalence of traditional agricultural land use and the absence of appropriate resource management often result in the degradation of natural soil fertility in the country. Thus, in this study we have attempted to investigate the value that the farmers have attached to soil conservation practices and the determinants of willingness to pay for it using a Contingent Valuation Method. In the CVM survey, Double Bounded Dichotomous Choice format with an open ended follow up was used to elicit the households’ willingness to pay. Based on data collected from 218 respondents, probit model was employed to assess the determinants of willingness to pay. The model shows that age, sex, education level, family size, perception, tenure, Total Livestock Units and initial bid were the important variables in determining willingness to pay for soil conservation practices in the study area. Our study also shows that the mean willingness to pay (WTP) estimated from the Double Bounded Dichotomous Choice format was computed at 56.65 person days per household per annum. The respective total aggregate value of soil conservation in the study area (Adwa Woreda) was computed to be 1 373 592 person days per annum, which is equivalent to 16 483 104 Ethiopian Birr. Therefore, if new intervention program for soil conservation is to be implemented, policy makers should consider those factors for better results. In Our study, we found very few protest zeros only (1.8%) which shows CVM is suitable method for valuing non marketed goods in less developing countries like Ethiopia. Keywords: Contingent Valuation Method, Willingness to Pay, Soil Conservation, Double Bounded Dichotomous Choic