Success and failure factors for increasing Sub-Saharan African smallholders’ resilience to drought through water management

Abstract

This article analyses the success and failure factors underlying smallholder farmers’ resilience to drought in Sub-Saharan Africa based on a literature review of the period 2007–19. The analysis is guided by transformation theory, which states that transformation requires adequate preconditions in three spheres: practical, political and personal. While significant progress has occurred in the practical sphere, only moderate change characterizes the political sphere, and the most limited progress is within the personal sphere. We argue that increasing drought resilience requires innovative solutions, including components from all transformation spheres. Interactions with local stakeholders and the empowerment of smallholder farmers are essential.