Farmers’ beliefs and concerns about climate change, and their adaptation behavior to combat climate change in Saudi Arabia

arrangements. Therefore, the issue of agricultural labor workforce may persist until the gov- ernment decides to intervene by relaxing the working environment for the agricultural labor. Lack of interest to adapt and poor knowledge about different adaptation practices might be attributed to weak extension and advisory setup a considerable size of the farmers does not have access to extension services. This is also evident in farmers sources of information about climate change; extension is not a common source of information about climate change by majority of the farmers. This suggests clear gaps in extension system that need to be corrected. Substantial investments in capacity building are required. Farmers should be educated about sustainable agricultural practices and climate-smart agriculture to promote the adoption of such practices. The sustainable management of agroecosystems depends on sound knowledge and technical skills about different sustainable agricultural practices. Diverse and adaptive knowledge base is essential due to changing nature of agriculture. A set of agricultural prac- tices have been developed as a result of decades of research. Adoption of these practices would not only increase the efficient use of natural resources, but it will also mitigate the negative impact of agriculture on the environment. Capacity building programs will enhance the adap- tative capacity of the farming community as well as various other stakeholders of the value chain [42,98–103].

Farmers also indicate that they need financial support as it is costly to implement different adaptation measures. Additionally, it also increases maintenance costs. The findings suggest that most of the farmers have small farms (below 4 hectares) and also do not have access to agricultural loans. The provision of agricultural subsidies and interest-free loans may prove helpful in solving their financial problems and might promote the process of adaptation. How- ever, economic incentives can promote the adoption in the short run, but a change in farmers’ behavior by cultivating a sense of environmental stewardship is more beneficial for the long- term use and retention of such practices [104,105]. Besides financial support, farmers also need government support in several other affairs. Such support can come in the form of con- ducive regulatory frameworks at national and local levels that aim to facilitate the adaptation activities. The government should formulate pro-environmental regulatory frameworks that are also economically feasible and socially just. Although, the Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture (MEWA) has outlined its ambition in the national strategy for agriculture [106] to implement sustainable practices in the Kingdom, but concrete measures are needed to materialize the ambitious plan. In order to adopt a multisectoral adaptation strategy for pro- moting synergy between various departments, the government can create and strengthen cooperation and collaboration between interrelated and interdependent institutions. Cross-

ministerial structures and multi-sector planning that aims to promote greater policy coherence can prove more effective for climate change adaptation [107,108]. Moreover, the government should focus on the creation of markets for sustainable products to encourage the farmers to adaptation in the long-run. The findings also reveal that demographic characteristics do not significantly affect farmers’ views about different adaptation obstacles. It suggests that most of the farming community in the study area is facing same problems that need to be addressed by the concerned institutions. 5. Conclusion The current study explores farmers’ beliefs about climate change, their concerns about the potential impacts of climate change, and their perspective regarding different adaptation obstacles. In terms of beliefs, farmers seem convinced about the occurrence of climate change and think that its major drivers are human-induced actions. Drought, insects, crop diseases, and heat stress on crops are their main concerns that increase their risks associated with the PLOS ONE Adaptation of climate change among farmers PLOS ONE | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0280838 January 25, 2023 14 / 20