Knowledge, attitudes, and practices of farmers towards sustainable agriculture in the Barind Tract of Bangladesh
- 1Department of Agronomy and Agricultural Extension, University of Rajshahi
- 2College of Humanities and Development Studies (COHD), China Agricultural University
Abstract
The global imperative to transition towards sustainable agriculture is particularly acute in vulnerable, resource-scarce regions such as the Barind Tract of Bangladesh, an area characterized by a semi-arid climate, low soil fertility, and acute water scarcity. Understanding the drivers of and barriers to adoption is critical, and the Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice (KAP) framework provides a useful analytical lens. This study assessed farmers’ knowledge, attitudes, and practices concerning sustainable agriculture and examined the socio-economic and institutional factors associated with each of the three KAP domains. Data were collected through structured, face-to-face interviews with 273 smallholder farmers selected via a multi-stage random sampling procedure in the Rajshahi district. Composite KAP scores were computed by summing item scores, and respondents were categorized on the basis of their obtained composite scores. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and three separate multiple linear regression models. The findings reveal a notable paradox: although farmers possess moderate to high levels of knowledge (mean = 19.27 out of 30) and largely favorable attitudes (mean = 56.34 out of 70), their actual adoption of sustainable practices remains moderate (mean = 18.42 out of a possible 38), exposing a persistent knowledge–practice gap. Annual farm income emerged as the strongest and most consistent positive correlate across all three KAP domains, underscoring economic capacity as a fundamental enabler of engagement with sustainable agriculture. Farming experience was positively associated with knowledge and attitude, cosmopoliteness with knowledge, and age negatively with knowledge, whereas formal education, training, and agricultural extension contact showed no statistically significant associations. The results suggest that adoption in this context is constrained less by cognitive limitations than by structural and economic barriers. Policy should therefore complement information campaigns with financial de-risking instruments, stronger market linkages for sustainably produced crops, and facilitative, farmer-centric extension approaches to help bridge the intention–action divide.
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BibTeX
@article{pervez2026knowledge,
title = {{Knowledge, attitudes, and practices of farmers towards sustainable agriculture in the Barind Tract of Bangladesh}},
author = {A K M Kanak Pervez and Md Mahedi and Ashfaq Ahmad Shah and Shabrin Jahan Shaili and Md Nurnobi},
journal = {Discover Agriculture},
year = {2026},
month = nov,
doi = {10.1007/s44279-026-00770-6},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1007/s44279-026-00770-6},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Knowledge, attitudes, and practices of farmers towards sustainable agriculture in the Barind Tract of Bangladesh
AU - A K M Kanak Pervez
AU - Md Mahedi
AU - Ashfaq Ahmad Shah
AU - Shabrin Jahan Shaili
AU - Md Nurnobi
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/11/08
JO - Discover Agriculture
DO - 10.1007/s44279-026-00770-6
UR - https://doi.org/10.1007/s44279-026-00770-6
AB - The global imperative to transition towards sustainable agriculture is particularly acute in vulnerable, resource-scarce regions such as the Barind Tract of Bangladesh, an area characterized by a semi-arid climate, low soil fertility, and acute water scarcity. Understanding the drivers of and barriers to adoption is critical, and the Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice (KAP) framework provides a useful analytical lens. This study assessed farmers’ knowledge, attitudes, and practices concerning sustainable agriculture and examined the socio-economic and institutional factors associated with each of the three KAP domains. Data were collected through structured, face-to-face interviews with 273 smallholder farmers selected via a multi-stage random sampling procedure in the Rajshahi district. Composite KAP scores were computed by summing item scores, and respondents were categorized on the basis of their obtained composite scores. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and three separate multiple linear regression models. The findings reveal a notable paradox: although farmers possess moderate to high levels of knowledge (mean = 19.27 out of 30) and largely favorable attitudes (mean = 56.34 out of 70), their actual adoption of sustainable practices remains moderate (mean = 18.42 out of a possible 38), exposing a persistent knowledge–practice gap. Annual farm income emerged as the strongest and most consistent positive correlate across all three KAP domains, underscoring economic capacity as a fundamental enabler of engagement with sustainable agriculture. Farming experience was positively associated with knowledge and attitude, cosmopoliteness with knowledge, and age negatively with knowledge, whereas formal education, training, and agricultural extension contact showed no statistically significant associations. The results suggest that adoption in this context is constrained less by cognitive limitations than by structural and economic barriers. Policy should therefore complement information campaigns with financial de-risking instruments, stronger market linkages for sustainably produced crops, and facilitative, farmer-centric extension approaches to help bridge the intention–action divide.
SN - 2731-9598
ER -