African rural labour, income diversification &amp; livelihood approaches: a long‐term development perspective

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Review of African Political Economy

Volume 26, Issue 80

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African rural labour, income diversification & livelihood approaches: a long‐term development perspective

research-article

Author(s): Deborah Fahy Bryceson ^a

Publication date (Print): June 1999

Journal: Review of African Political Economy

Publisher: Review of African Political Economy

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Abstract

The implementation of SAP and economic liberalisation throughout sub‐Saharan Africa during the last fifteen years has coincided with the rapid expansion of rural income diversification. Many analysts see income diversification as a vital coping strategy for the rural poor, while recognising that its growing incidence amongst all sections of the African rural population can serve as a mechanism for increasing wealth differentiation. The current income diversification and livelihoods literature primarily restricts itself to situational analysis underpinned by assumptions of economic optimization on the part of decision‐making households, while ignoring the broader process of depeasantization. Early agrarian change took the form of urban migration, funnelling labour from rural areas and creating an array of stimuli that acted indirectly upon village life. Rural income diversification adds a new, more immediate dimension. Villagers are now actively part of in situoccupational change that has far‐reaching implications for the social coherence of rural households and the political balance of local communities and nation‐states. Such profound transformation calls into question the ‘sustainability’ of rural livelihood strategies now being advocated by donor agencies as well as the relevance of delineating formal, informal and peasant sectors of the national economy.

Content

Author and article information

Journal

Journal ID (publisher-id): crea20

Journal ID (archive): CREA

Title: Review of African Political Economy

Publisher: Review of African Political Economy

ISSN (Print): 0305-6244

ISSN (Electronic): 1740-1720

Publication date (Print): June 1999

Volume: 26

Issue: 80

Pages: 171-189

Affiliations

^a African Studies Centre , University of Leiden

Article

Publisher ID: 8704377 Coden ID: Review of African Political Economy, Vol. 26, No. 80, June 1999, pp. 171-189

DOI: 10.1080/03056249908704377

SO-VID: ee3a6da2-3a4c-49f0-8291-5390987c67c3

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All content is freely available without charge to users or their institutions. Users are allowed to read, download, copy, distribute, print, search, or link to the full texts of the articles in this journal without asking prior permission of the publisher or the author. Articles published in the journal are distributed under a http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.

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Figures: 0, Tables: 0, References: 60, Pages: 19

Bibliography

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Bruijn M and Dijk H van. . 1994. . ‘Drought and Coping Strategies in Fulbe Society in the Hayre’. . Cahiers d'etudes Africaines . , Vol. 34((133/135)): 85––108. .
Bryceson D F. . 1980. . ‘The Proletarianization of Women in Tanzania’. . Review of African Political Economy . ,
Hodd M. , ed. 1988. . “‘Household, Hoe and Nation: Development Policies of the Nyerere Era’. ”. In Tanzania after Nyerere . , London : : Pinter Publishers Limited. .
1990. . Food Insecurity and the Social Division of Labour in Tanzania, 1919–1985 . , Basingstoke : : Macmillan. .
1993. . Liberalizing Tanzania's Food Trade . , London : : James Currey Publishers. .
1996a. . ‘Deagrarianization and Rural Employment in Sub‐Saharan Africa: A Sectoral Perspective’. . World Development . , Vol. 24((1)): 97––111. .
Schmied D. , ed. 1996b. . “‘Structural Adjustment in Tanzania: Rural Women Farmers’ Production Opportunity or Overload?’. ”. In Changing Rural Structures in Tanzania . , p. 1––30. . Munster : : Lit Verlag. .
Bryceson D F, Kay C and Mooij J. , eds. 2000. . “‘Disappearing Peasantries? Rural Labour Redundancy in the Neo‐liberal Era’. ”. In Disappearing Peasantries? . , London : : IT Publications. .
Bryceson D F and Howe J. . 1995. . “‘An Agrarian Continent in Transition’. ”. In Africa Now . , Edited by: Ellis S.. London : : James Currey Publishers. .
1997. . ‘African Rural Labour and the World Bank: An Alternative Perspective’. . Development in Practice . , Vol. 7((1)): 26––38. .
Bryceson D F and Jamal V. , eds. 1997. . Farewell to Farms: De‐agrarianisation and Employment in Africa . , Avebury : : Ashgate. .
Campbell J. . 1987. . “Strategies for Coping with Severe Food Deficits in Northeastern Africa’. . Northeast African Studies . , Vol. 9((2)): 43––54. .
Carney D. . January. 1999 . “‘Approaches to Sustainable Livelihoods for the Rural Poor’. ”. (ODI Poverty Briefing 2). January. ,
Carswell G. . 1997. . “‘Agricultural Intensification and Rural Sustainable Livelihoods: A “Think Piece"’. ”. (IDS Working Paper 64.).
Chuta E and Leidholm C. . 1975. . “‘The Role of Small‐Scale Industry in Employment Generation and Rural Development: Initial Research Results from Sierra Leone’. ”. (African Rural Employment Paper No. 11). Department of Agricultural Economics, Michigan State University. .
1979. . “‘Rural Non‐Farm Employment: A Review of the State of the Art’. ”. Department of Agricultural Economics, Michigan State University. .
Chuta E and Sethuraman S V. , eds. 1985. . Rural Small‐Scale Industries and Employment in Africa and Asia . , Geneva : : ILO. .
Collier P and Gunning J W. . 1997. . “‘Explaining African Economic Performance’. ”. (Centre for the Study of African Economics Working Paper 97–2.1.). University of Oxford. .
Cooksey B. . 1994. . “‘Who's Poor in Tanzania? A Review of Recent Poverty Research’. ”. In Poverty Alleviation in Tanzania: Recent Research Issues . , Edited by: Bagachwa M S D. . Dar es Salaam University Press. .
Cooper F. . 1996. . Decolonization and African Society: The Labor Question in French and British Africa . , Cambridge University Press. .
Dercon S and Krishnan P. . 1996. . ‘Income Portfolios in Rural Ethiopia and Tanzania: Choices and Constraints’. . Journal of Development Studies . , Vol. 32((6)): 850––75. .
Ellis F. . 1998. . “Household Strategies and Rural Livelihood Diversification’. . Journal of Development Studies . , Vol. 35((1))
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Haggblade S, Hazell P and Brown J. . 1989. . ‘Farm‐Nonfarm Linkages in Rural Sub‐Saharan Africa’. . World Development . , Vol. 17((8)): 1173––1201. .
Hanmer L, Pyatt G and White H. . 1997. . Poverty in Sub‐Saharan Africa: What Can We Learn from the World Bank's Poverty Assessments? . , The Hague : : Institute of Social Studies. .
Iliya M and Swindell K. . 1997. . “‘Winners and Losers: Household Fortunes in the Urban Peripheries of Northern Nigeria’. ”. In Farewell to Farms . , Edited by: Bryceson D F and Jamal V. . Avebury : : Ashgate. .
Jambiya G L K. . 1998. . “‘The Dynamics of Population, Land Scarcity, Agriculture and Non‐Agricultural Activities: West Usambara Mountains, Lushoto District, Tanzania’. ”. (University of Dar es Salaam Working Paper). Vol. Vol. 28.. , Leiden : : Afrika‐Studiecentrum/ Institute of Resource Assessment. .
Kilby P. . 1986. . “‘The Non‐farm Rural Economy’. ”. (EDI Course Note.). Washington , DC : : World Bank. .
Konter J H. . 1974. . Facts and Factors in the Rural Economy of the Nyakyusa, Tanzania . , Leiden , , The Netherlands: : Afrika‐Studiecentrum. .
Liedholm C and Mead D. . 1986. . “‘Small Scale Enterprises in Developing Countries: A Review of the State of the Art’. ”. (MSU International Development Paper No. 30.). Michigan State University. .
Livingstone I. . 1991. . ‘A Reassessment of Kenya's Rural and Urban Informal Sector’. . World Development . , Vol. 19((6)): 651––70. .
Madulu F. . 1998. . “Changing Lifestyle in Farming Societies of Sukumaland: Kwimba District, Tanzania’. ”. (University of Dar es Salaam Working Paper). Vol. Vol. 27. , Leiden : : Afrika‐Studiecentrum/Institute of Resource Assessment. .
Mbilinyi M. . ‘The End of Small‐Holder Farming?’. In: . Paper presented at the TGNP Seminar; . August. 1997 ; . Dar es Salaam. .
Meagher K. . 2000. . “‘Veiled Conflicts: Peasant Differentiation, Gender and Structural Adjustment in Nigerian Hausaland’. ”. In Disappearing Peasantries: Rural Labour in Africa, Asia and Latin America . , Edited by: Bryceson D F, Kay C and Mooij J. . London : : IT Publications. .
Meagher K and Mustapha A R. . 1997. . “‘Not by Farming Alone: The Role of Non‐Farm Incomes in Rural Hausaland’. ”. In Farewell to Farms . , Edited by: Bryceson D F and Jamal V. . Aldershot : : Ashgate. .
Meillassoux C. . 1981. . Maidens, Meal and Money . , New York : : Cambridge University Press. .
Mung'ong'o C. . 1995. . “‘Social Process and Ecology in the Kondoa Irangi Hills, Central Tanzania’. ”. (Meddelanden series B 93). Stockholm University. .
1998. . “‘Coming Full Circle: Agriculture, Non‐Farm Activities and the Resurgence of Out‐Migration in Njombe District, Tanzania’. ”. Vol. Vol. 26. , Afrika‐Studiecentrum, Leiden/Institute of Resource Assessment. .
Mwamfupe D. . 1998. . “‘Changing Village Land, Labour and Livelihoods: Rungwe and Kyela Districts, Tanzania’. ”. (University of Dar es Salaam Working Paper). Vol. Vol. 29. , Afrika‐Studiecentrum, Leiden/Institute of Resource Assessment. .
Narayan D. . 1997. . “‘Voices of the Poor: Poverty and Social Capital in Tanzania’. ”. (World Bank Environmentally and Socially Sustainable Development Studies and Monographs Series 20.). Washington , DC :
Orde‐Browne G St. J. . 1926. . Labour in the Tanganyika Territory . , London : : HMSO. .
1933. . The African Labourer . , London : : Frank Cass & Co. Ltd. .
1946. . Labour Conditions in East Africa . , London : : HMSO. .
Pietilä T. . “‘Drinking Mothers Feeding Children: Market Women and Gender Politics in Kilimanjaro’. ”. In Africa through the Drinking Glass: Mixing Business, Pleasure and Politics . Edited by: Bryceson D F and Tellegen N. . forthcoming :
Raikes P. . 1988. . Modernizing Hunger . , London : : James Currey. .
Reardon T, Delgado C and Matlon P. . 1992. . ‘Determinants and Effects of Income Diversification amongst Farm Households in Burkina Faso’. . Journal of Development Studies . , Vol. 28((2)): 264––96. .
Reardon T. . 1997. . ‘Using Evidence of Household Income Diversification to Inform Study of the Rural Nonfarm Labor Market in Africa’. . World Development . , Vol. 25((5)): 735––47. .
Sen A K. . 1980. . Poverty and Famines . , Oxford : : Clarendon Press. .
Sender J and Smith S. . 1990. . Poverty, Class and Gender in Rural Africa: A Tanzanian Case Study . , London : : Routledge. .
Swift J. . ‘Factors Influencing the Dynamics of Livelihood Diversification and Rural Non‐Farm Employment in Space and Time’. In: . UK DFID Natural Resource Advisors Conference; . July. 1998 ; .
Tacoli C. . 1998. . Bridging the Divide: Rural‐Urban Interactions and Livelihood Strategies . , (Gatekeeper Series No. 77.). International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED). .
Tellegen N. . 1997. . Rural Enterprises in Malawi: Necessity or Opportunity? . , Avebury : : Ashgate. .
Wolpe H. . 1972. . ‘Capitalism and Cheap Labour Power’. . Economy and Society . , Vol. 1:
World Bank. . 1993. . “‘Tanzania: A Poverty Profile’. ”. Washington , DC :
1994. . “‘Adjustment in Africa: Reform, Results and the Road Ahead’. ”. New York : : Oxford University Press. .
1995a. . “‘Labor and the Growth Crisis in Sub‐Saharan Africa: Regional Perspectives’. ”. Washington , DC :
1995b. . “‘World Development Report 1995: Workers in an Integrating World’. ”. New York : : Oxford University Press. .
Zoomers A‐L. . 1999. . Linking Livelihood Strategies to Development: Experiences from the Bolivian Andes . , Amsterdam : : Royal Tropical Institute. .

Comments

Comment on this article

[1] Bangura Y. . 1994. . ‘Economic Restructuring, Coping Strategies and Social Change: Implications for Institutional Development in Africa’. . Development and Change . , Vol. 25((4)): 785––827. .

[2] Berkvens R. . November. 1997 . “‘Backing Two Horses: Interaction of Agricultural and Non‐Agricultural Household Activities in a Zimbabwean Communal Area’. ”. (Afrika‐Studiecentrum Working Paper). Vol. Vol 24. , November. , Leiden :

[3] Bruijn M and Dijk H van. . 1994. . ‘Drought and Coping Strategies in Fulbe Society in the Hayre’. . Cahiers d'etudes Africaines . , Vol. 34((133/135)): 85––108. .

[4] Bryceson D F. . 1980. . ‘The Proletarianization of Women in Tanzania’. . Review of African Political Economy . ,

[5] Hodd M. , ed. 1988. . “‘Household, Hoe and Nation: Development Policies of the Nyerere Era’. ”. In Tanzania after Nyerere . , London : : Pinter Publishers Limited. .

[6] 1990. . Food Insecurity and the Social Division of Labour in Tanzania, 1919–1985 . , Basingstoke : : Macmillan. .

[7] 1993. . Liberalizing Tanzania's Food Trade . , London : : James Currey Publishers. .

[8] 1996a. . ‘Deagrarianization and Rural Employment in Sub‐Saharan Africa: A Sectoral Perspective’. . World Development . , Vol. 24((1)): 97––111. .

[9] Schmied D. , ed. 1996b. . “‘Structural Adjustment in Tanzania: Rural Women Farmers’ Production Opportunity or Overload?’. ”. In Changing Rural Structures in Tanzania . , p. 1––30. . Munster : : Lit Verlag. .

[10] Bryceson D F, Kay C and Mooij J. , eds. 2000. . “‘Disappearing Peasantries? Rural Labour Redundancy in the Neo‐liberal Era’. ”. In Disappearing Peasantries? . , London : : IT Publications. .

[11] Bryceson D F and Howe J. . 1995. . “‘An Agrarian Continent in Transition’. ”. In Africa Now . , Edited by: Ellis S.. London : : James Currey Publishers. .

[12] 1997. . ‘African Rural Labour and the World Bank: An Alternative Perspective’. . Development in Practice . , Vol. 7((1)): 26––38. .

[13] Bryceson D F and Jamal V. , eds. 1997. . Farewell to Farms: De‐agrarianisation and Employment in Africa . , Avebury : : Ashgate. .

[14] Campbell J. . 1987. . “Strategies for Coping with Severe Food Deficits in Northeastern Africa’. . Northeast African Studies . , Vol. 9((2)): 43––54. .

[15] Carney D. . January. 1999 . “‘Approaches to Sustainable Livelihoods for the Rural Poor’. ”. (ODI Poverty Briefing 2). January. ,

[16] Carswell G. . 1997. . “‘Agricultural Intensification and Rural Sustainable Livelihoods: A “Think Piece"’. ”. (IDS Working Paper 64.).

[17] Chuta E and Leidholm C. . 1975. . “‘The Role of Small‐Scale Industry in Employment Generation and Rural Development: Initial Research Results from Sierra Leone’. ”. (African Rural Employment Paper No. 11). Department of Agricultural Economics, Michigan State University. .

[18] 1979. . “‘Rural Non‐Farm Employment: A Review of the State of the Art’. ”. Department of Agricultural Economics, Michigan State University. .

[19] Chuta E and Sethuraman S V. , eds. 1985. . Rural Small‐Scale Industries and Employment in Africa and Asia . , Geneva : : ILO. .

[20] Collier P and Gunning J W. . 1997. . “‘Explaining African Economic Performance’. ”. (Centre for the Study of African Economics Working Paper 97–2.1.). University of Oxford. .

[21] Cooksey B. . 1994. . “‘Who's Poor in Tanzania? A Review of Recent Poverty Research’. ”. In Poverty Alleviation in Tanzania: Recent Research Issues . , Edited by: Bagachwa M S D. . Dar es Salaam University Press. .

[22] Cooper F. . 1996. . Decolonization and African Society: The Labor Question in French and British Africa . , Cambridge University Press. .

[23] Dercon S and Krishnan P. . 1996. . ‘Income Portfolios in Rural Ethiopia and Tanzania: Choices and Constraints’. . Journal of Development Studies . , Vol. 32((6)): 850––75. .

[24] Ellis F. . 1998. . “Household Strategies and Rural Livelihood Diversification’. . Journal of Development Studies . , Vol. 35((1))

[25] Goodman D and Watts M. , eds. 1997. . Globalising Food . , London : : Routledge. .

[26] Haggblade S, Hazell P and Brown J. . 1989. . ‘Farm‐Nonfarm Linkages in Rural Sub‐Saharan Africa’. . World Development . , Vol. 17((8)): 1173––1201. .

[27] Hanmer L, Pyatt G and White H. . 1997. . Poverty in Sub‐Saharan Africa: What Can We Learn from the World Bank's Poverty Assessments? . , The Hague : : Institute of Social Studies. .

[28] Iliya M and Swindell K. . 1997. . “‘Winners and Losers: Household Fortunes in the Urban Peripheries of Northern Nigeria’. ”. In Farewell to Farms . , Edited by: Bryceson D F and Jamal V. . Avebury : : Ashgate. .

[29] Jambiya G L K. . 1998. . “‘The Dynamics of Population, Land Scarcity, Agriculture and Non‐Agricultural Activities: West Usambara Mountains, Lushoto District, Tanzania’. ”. (University of Dar es Salaam Working Paper). Vol. Vol. 28.. , Leiden : : Afrika‐Studiecentrum/ Institute of Resource Assessment. .

[30] Kilby P. . 1986. . “‘The Non‐farm Rural Economy’. ”. (EDI Course Note.). Washington , DC : : World Bank. .

[31] Konter J H. . 1974. . Facts and Factors in the Rural Economy of the Nyakyusa, Tanzania . , Leiden , , The Netherlands: : Afrika‐Studiecentrum. .

[32] Liedholm C and Mead D. . 1986. . “‘Small Scale Enterprises in Developing Countries: A Review of the State of the Art’. ”. (MSU International Development Paper No. 30.). Michigan State University. .

[33] Livingstone I. . 1991. . ‘A Reassessment of Kenya's Rural and Urban Informal Sector’. . World Development . , Vol. 19((6)): 651––70. .

[34] Madulu F. . 1998. . “Changing Lifestyle in Farming Societies of Sukumaland: Kwimba District, Tanzania’. ”. (University of Dar es Salaam Working Paper). Vol. Vol. 27. , Leiden : : Afrika‐Studiecentrum/Institute of Resource Assessment. .

[35] Mbilinyi M. . ‘The End of Small‐Holder Farming?’. In: . Paper presented at the TGNP Seminar; . August. 1997 ; . Dar es Salaam. .

[36] Meagher K. . 2000. . “‘Veiled Conflicts: Peasant Differentiation, Gender and Structural Adjustment in Nigerian Hausaland’. ”. In Disappearing Peasantries: Rural Labour in Africa, Asia and Latin America . , Edited by: Bryceson D F, Kay C and Mooij J. . London : : IT Publications. .

[37] Meagher K and Mustapha A R. . 1997. . “‘Not by Farming Alone: The Role of Non‐Farm Incomes in Rural Hausaland’. ”. In Farewell to Farms . , Edited by: Bryceson D F and Jamal V. . Aldershot : : Ashgate. .

[38] Meillassoux C. . 1981. . Maidens, Meal and Money . , New York : : Cambridge University Press. .

[39] Mung'ong'o C. . 1995. . “‘Social Process and Ecology in the Kondoa Irangi Hills, Central Tanzania’. ”. (Meddelanden series B 93). Stockholm University. .

[40] 1998. . “‘Coming Full Circle: Agriculture, Non‐Farm Activities and the Resurgence of Out‐Migration in Njombe District, Tanzania’. ”. Vol. Vol. 26. , Afrika‐Studiecentrum, Leiden/Institute of Resource Assessment. .

[41] Mwamfupe D. . 1998. . “‘Changing Village Land, Labour and Livelihoods: Rungwe and Kyela Districts, Tanzania’. ”. (University of Dar es Salaam Working Paper). Vol. Vol. 29. , Afrika‐Studiecentrum, Leiden/Institute of Resource Assessment. .

[42] Narayan D. . 1997. . “‘Voices of the Poor: Poverty and Social Capital in Tanzania’. ”. (World Bank Environmentally and Socially Sustainable Development Studies and Monographs Series 20.). Washington , DC :

[43] Orde‐Browne G St. J. . 1926. . Labour in the Tanganyika Territory . , London : : HMSO. .

[44] 1933. . The African Labourer . , London : : Frank Cass & Co. Ltd. .

[45] 1946. . Labour Conditions in East Africa . , London : : HMSO. .

[46] Pietilä T. . “‘Drinking Mothers Feeding Children: Market Women and Gender Politics in Kilimanjaro’. ”. In Africa through the Drinking Glass: Mixing Business, Pleasure and Politics . Edited by: Bryceson D F and Tellegen N. . forthcoming :

[47] Raikes P. . 1988. . Modernizing Hunger . , London : : James Currey. .

[48] Reardon T, Delgado C and Matlon P. . 1992. . ‘Determinants and Effects of Income Diversification amongst Farm Households in Burkina Faso’. . Journal of Development Studies . , Vol. 28((2)): 264––96. .

[49] Reardon T. . 1997. . ‘Using Evidence of Household Income Diversification to Inform Study of the Rural Nonfarm Labor Market in Africa’. . World Development . , Vol. 25((5)): 735––47. .

[50] Sen A K. . 1980. . Poverty and Famines . , Oxford : : Clarendon Press. .

[51] Sender J and Smith S. . 1990. . Poverty, Class and Gender in Rural Africa: A Tanzanian Case Study . , London : : Routledge. .

[52] Swift J. . ‘Factors Influencing the Dynamics of Livelihood Diversification and Rural Non‐Farm Employment in Space and Time’. In: . UK DFID Natural Resource Advisors Conference; . July. 1998 ; .

[53] Tacoli C. . 1998. . Bridging the Divide: Rural‐Urban Interactions and Livelihood Strategies . , (Gatekeeper Series No. 77.). International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED). .

[54] Tellegen N. . 1997. . Rural Enterprises in Malawi: Necessity or Opportunity? . , Avebury : : Ashgate. .

[55] Wolpe H. . 1972. . ‘Capitalism and Cheap Labour Power’. . Economy and Society . , Vol. 1:

[56] World Bank. . 1993. . “‘Tanzania: A Poverty Profile’. ”. Washington , DC :

[57] 1994. . “‘Adjustment in Africa: Reform, Results and the Road Ahead’. ”. New York : : Oxford University Press. .

[58] 1995a. . “‘Labor and the Growth Crisis in Sub‐Saharan Africa: Regional Perspectives’. ”. Washington , DC :

[59] 1995b. . “‘World Development Report 1995: Workers in an Integrating World’. ”. New York : : Oxford University Press. .

[60] Zoomers A‐L. . 1999. . Linking Livelihood Strategies to Development: Experiences from the Bolivian Andes . , Amsterdam : : Royal Tropical Institute. .