54 research outputs found

    Employment dynamics in the rural nonfarm sector in Ethiopia Do the poor have time on their side?

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    We study rural employment transitions in Ethiopia between farming and both low- and high-return nonfarm employment. We find that initial asset holdings and access to saving and credit are important factors for transition into high-return rural nonfarm employment and that households’ participation in high-return rural nonfarm activities is robust to their experience of health shocks. However, shocks that affect their wealth or liquidity may trigger descents into low-return nonfarm employment. On the other hand, shocks that reduce agricultural income motivate transitions into high-return rural nonfarm employment.rural nonfarm; income diversification; employment transitions; Ethiopia; shocks

    Land access and youth livelihood opportunities in Southern Ethiopia

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    Ethiopia. Access to agricultural land is a constitutional right for rural residents of Ethiopia. We used survey data from the relatively land abundant districts of Oromia Region and from the land scarce districts of Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples’ (SNNP) Region. We found that youth in the rural south have limited potential to obtain agricultural land that can be a basis for viable livelihood. The law prohibits the purchase and sale of land in Ethiopia. We found that land access through allocation from authorities is virtually nonexistent while land that can be obtained from parents through inheritance or gift is too small to establish a meaningful livelihood. The land rental market has restrictions, including on the number of years land can be rented out. Perhaps as a result of limited land access, the youth have turned their back on agriculture. Our study shows that only nine percent of youth in these rural areas plan to pursue farming. The majority are planning non-agricultural livelihoods. We also found a significant rural-urban migration among the youth and especially in areas with severe agricultural land scarcity. Our econometric analyses show that youth from families with larger land holding are less likely to choose non-agricultural livelihood as well as less likely to migrate to urban areas. We suggest here some measures to improve rural livelihood such as creation of non-farm employment opportunities and improvement of land rental markets. We also argue that as a certain level of rural-urban migration is unavoidable, investigating youth migration is essential to design policies that help the migrating youth as well as the host communities.UNHABITA

    Street based self-employment : a poverty trap or a stepping stone for migrant youth in Africa?

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    A significant percentage of youth in urban Africa is employed in the informal sector. The informal sector is more accessible than the formal sector for people with low human and financial capital, such as youth migrants from rural areas. But the sector is also generally considered to provide a subsistence livelihood. This study examines whether street based selfemployment in Africa offer a stepping stone towards a better livelihood or an urban poverty trap for youth migrants. The analysis is based on data from a survey of 445 street vendors in two urban areas in Ethiopia. We found that street based self-employment is indeed dominated by migrant youth; 96% of those engaged in the street based self-employment are youth and 98% are migrants from rural areas or smaller towns. Our analysis suggests that street based selfemployment can offer a viable transitional employment for migrant youth. We found that the average monthly earning of these self-employed youth is better than the minimum wage in the public sector and much higher than the official poverty line. We found that most of the youth consider this as a transitional employment and accumulate skill and capital with a view to establishing their own enterprise or accessing skilled employment. Young women are less likely than young men to seek exit out of street based self-employment but education increases their aspiration. Youth with better-off parents back home and those with larger network in their new residence are more likely to change their current occupation. The main risk for the livelihood of youth in this type of employment is lack of legal recognition to their activities and work place, which manifest itself in the form of arbitrary eviction and displacement from their work place

    Land Access and Youth Livelihood Opportunities in Southern Ethiopia

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    This study aims to examine current land access and youth livelihood opportunities in Southern Ethiopia. Access to agricultural land is a constitutional right for rural residents of Ethiopia. We used survey data from the relatively land abundant districts of Oromia Region and from the land scarce districts of Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples’ (SNNP) Region. We found that youth in the rural south have limited potential to obtain agricultural land that can be a basis for viable livelihood. The law prohibits the purchase and sale of land in Ethiopia. We found that land access through allocation from authorities is virtually nonexistent while land that can be obtained from parents through inheritance or gift is too small to establish a meaningful livelihood. The land rental market has restrictions, including on the number of years land can be rented out. Perhaps as a result of limited land access, the youth have turned their back on agriculture. Our study shows that only nine percent of youth in these rural areas plan to pursue farming. The majority are planning non-agricultural livelihoods. We also found a significant rural-urban migration among the youth and especially in areas with severe agricultural land scarcity. Our econometric analyses show that youth from families with larger land holding are less likely to choose non-agricultural livelihood as well as less likely to migrate to urban areas. We suggest here some measures to improve rural livelihood such as creation of non-farm employment opportunities and improvement of land rental markets. We also argue that as a certain level of rural-urban migration is unavoidable, investigating youth migration is essential to design policies that help the migrating youth as well as the host communities

    Land Access and Youth Livelihood Opportunities in Southern Ethiopia

    Get PDF
    This study aims to examine current land access and youth livelihood opportunities in Southern Ethiopia. Access to agricultural land is a constitutional right for rural residents of Ethiopia. We used survey data from the relatively land abundant districts of Oromia Region and from the land scarce districts of Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples’ (SNNP) Region. We found that youth in the rural south have limited potential to obtain agricultural land that can be a basis for viable livelihood. The law prohibits the purchase and sale of land in Ethiopia. We found that land access through allocation from authorities is virtually nonexistent while land that can be obtained from parents through inheritance or gift is too small to establish a meaningful livelihood. The land rental market has restrictions, including on the number of years land can be rented out. Perhaps as a result of limited land access, the youth have turned their back on agriculture. Our study shows that only nine percent of youth in these rural areas plan to pursue farming. The majority are planning non-agricultural livelihoods. We also found a significant rural-urban migration among the youth and especially in areas with severe agricultural land scarcity. Our econometric analyses show that youth from families with larger land holding are less likely to choose non-agricultural livelihood as well as less likely to migrate to urban areas. We suggest here some measures to improve rural livelihood such as creation of non-farm employment opportunities and improvement of land rental markets. We also argue that as a certain level of rural-urban migration is unavoidable, investigating youth migration is essential to design policies that help the migrating youth as well as the host communities

    Activity Choice in Rural Non-farm Employment (RNFE): Survival versus accumulative strategy

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    This paper examines the nonfarm employment choice of individuals using panel data from Ethiopia that covers the period 1994-2004. Non-farm activities that require more resources in the form of skill or capital yield higher returns but employ proportionately fewer people. Women have lower participation rate than men, and those women who participate are often engaged in low-return activities. The econometric results suggest that the factors that influence individuals’ decision to participate in non-farm employment differ for the different types of activities. Determinants of participation in high-return activities are dominated by capacity variables. Determinants of participation in low-return activities are dominated by push factors. Education is the only factor that has the same (positive) impact on the likelihood of participation in all types on non-farm employment. Education was also found to have more impact on participation of women

    Climate change, agriculture and international migration: An African youth perspective

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    Existing evidence indicates that Africa is already being affected by climate change resulting in substantial challenges for both human and natural systems. Eastern Africa is among the regions in Africa with disproportionately higher risk of adverse consequences of global warming and climate change. Climate change and variability are having significant direct and indirect impacts on agricultural production, agricultural value chains, food and nutrition security as well as the overall sustainable growth of the sector in the region. Over time, it is expected that climate change will exacerbate the prevalence of spatio-temporal climate variability in Eastern Africa, and these variabilities will manifest in the increased frequency and severity of extreme climate events and the increasing irregularity and unpredictability of weather patterns. To the region’s farmers, these emerging changes represent an additional source of risks and uncertainty

    Pay-for-performance reduces bypassing of health facilities: evidence from Tanzania

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    Many patients and expectant mothers in low-income countries bypass local health facilities in search of betterquality services. This study examines the impact of a payment-for-performance (P4P) scheme on bypassing practices among expectant women in Tanzania. We expect the P4P intervention to reduce incidences of bypassing by improving the quality of services in local health facilities, thereby reducing the incentive to migrate. We used a difference-in-difference regression model to assess the impact of P4P on bypassing after one year and after three years. In addition, we implemented a machine learning approach to identify factors that predict bypassing. Overall, 38% of women bypassed their local health service provider to deliver in another facility. Our analysis shows that the P4P scheme significantly reduced bypassing. On average, P4P reduced bypassing in the study area by 17% (8 percentage points) over three years. We also identified two main predictors of bypassing - facility type and the distance to the closest hospital. Women are more likely to bypass if their local facility is a dispensary instead of a hospital or a health center. Women are less likely to bypass if they live close to a hospital.publishedVersio

    Impact of Improved Maize Adoption on Welfare of Farm Households in Malawi: A Panel Data Analysis

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    This paper assesses improved maize adoption in Malawi and examines the link between adoption and household welfare using a three-year household panel data. The distributional effect of maize technology adoption is also investigated by looking at impacts across wealth and gender groups. We applied control function approach and IV regression to control for endogeneity of input subsidy and improved maize adoption. We found that modern maize variety adoption is positively correlated with the household’s own maize consumption, income and asset holdings. We found evidence that improved maize adoption has stronger impact on welfare of female-headed households and poorer households

    Does the nonfarm economy offer pathways for upward mobility? Evidence from a panel data study in Ethiopia

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    Empirical studies across many developing countries routinely document a positive correlation between participation in rural nonfarm employment and households’ wealth or income. This paper explores whether nonfarm employment leads to higher consumption expenditure growth in Ethiopia. We find that: 1) households’ consumption expenditure growth is positively correlated with the initial share of nonfarm income; 2) the growth elasticity of nonfarm income share is higher for wealthier households; and 3) the main source of growth for nonfarm participants comes from the higher rates of return participants enjoy on their human and physical capital
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