Sustainable agriculture in Arid regions: Bridging knowledge, attitude, and practice gaps among UAE farmers
Seham M. Al Raish, Abdelghafar M. Abu-Elsaoud
Abstract. With growing environmental concerns and resource depletion, sustainable agriculture has become critical for food security in the United Arab Emirates’ (UAE) arid climate. However, limited research exists on farmers’ adoption of sustainable practices in this region. This study assessed knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) among 400 farmers in the UAE using a validated online survey. Results revealed generally low engagement, with mean scores ranging from 2.61 to 2.84 (knowledge), 2.75 to 2.91 (attitude), and 2.39 to 2.93 (practice) on a 5-point Likert scale. In contrast, knowledge and attitudes showed consistency, practices varied, indicating implementation gaps. Significant correlations between KAP components (p < 0.05) suggest their interdependence, with demographic factors such as age and education influencing the outcomes. These findings underscore the urgent need for targeted educational programs that address all three KAP dimensions to enhance the adoption of sustainable farming in the UAE.
Keywords
Attitudes, Farmers, Knowledge, Practices, Resilience, Sustainable Agriculture
Published online 6/20/2026, 10 pages
Copyright © 2026 by the author(s)
Published under license by Materials Research Forum LLC., Millersville PA, USA
Citation: Seham M. Al Raish, Abdelghafar M. Abu-Elsaoud, Sustainable agriculture in Arid regions: Bridging knowledge, attitude, and practice gaps among UAE farmers, Materials Research Proceedings, Vol. 67, pp 879-888, 2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.21741/9781644904176-120
The article was published as article 120 of the book Climate Action and Sustainability
Content from this work may be used under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 license. Any further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the title of the work, journal citation and DOI.
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