Unequal prospects: disparities in the quantity and quality of labour supply in sub-Saharan Africa

ASC – Publicaties niet-programma gebonde

Privatization and Economic Strategy in Mozambique

Sub-Saharan Africa, Mozambique, Conflict, Economic reform

Lifting the Blinkers: A New View of Power and Poverty in Mozambican Rural Labour Markets

This paper presents some results from the largest rural labour market survey yet conducted in Mozambique. Evidence from three provinces shows that labour markets have a significant impact on the lives of a large number of poor people and that employers exercise considerable discretion in setting wages and conditions of casual, seasonal and permanent wage employment. The evidence presented comes from a combination of a quantitative survey based on purposive sampling with other techniques, including interviews with large farmers. The findings contrast with ideas that rural labour markets are irrelevant to poverty reduction policy formulation in Africa and the paper concludes with methodological, analytical and policy recommendations