Access to Rural Non-Farm Livelihoods - Natural Resources Institute

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traditional low profit, low barrier activities, which complement but fall far short of basic farming incomes, and which are often undertaken by households in distress. In particular, increased dependency and the high numbers of widows and orphans in the area resulting from AIDS deaths have pushed some into engaging in more non-farm IGAs than in the past, as households without access to male labour in particular find it more difficult to make a satisfactory living from farming. However, even these “traditional” activities are more common than in the past as a result of increasing local consumption. Barriers to accessing profitable non-farm IGAs include poverty in its most basic sense, relating to lack of start up capital, but also to continued under-capitalisation of businesses and their failure to expand or even persist as proceeds are used to cover basic household needs instead of being reinvested or used to access better markets. Some of these barriers can be overcome by working in groups, but these, of necessity, exclude the poorest, who are usually unable to meet the investment/membership criteria. General poverty also leads to low levels of consumption and limited local markets which are subject to marked seasonal fluctuations, constraining the profitability of many enterprises, and it is also a part of the problems customers have in repaying credit. Institutional weakness in the village is an important constraint to the development of the nonfarm economy. There are few local institutions with much impact on day to day life, and those that exist are weak or do not function as they should. Inadequate security in more remote rural areas is a constraint to continuing with businesses beyond a certain size, which are forced to relocate to busier trading centres – prevention of theft is of paramount importance as confidence in the police’s ability to apprehend suspects and the judicial system’s ability to subsequently convict the guilty is minimal. There are few NGOs operating in the village and of those that are, there is a perception that benefits are not distributed equally or fairly. Finally, there are no MFIs based in the village – past credit schemes in the area seem to have had problems both with their extension/information services, such that potential clients have been unnecessarily deterred, and with their selection of clients, such that high numbers have defaulted and ended up in prison, not an ideal outcome for a development initiative. Reproductive labour demands constrain women’s abilities to participate in other activities of all kinds, and concerns about satisfactorily combining childcare and IGAs were voiced by several women – the burden of childcare is also often exacerbated by the high number of orphans and the high incidence of widowhood. In addition to reproductive and domestic labour, women also undertake much of the farm labour, and women, far more than men, cited lack of time, or tiredness, or overwork as a barrier to starting a new IGA or as a constraint to an existing one. Women are also particularly affected by lack of access to adequate transport, as they do not use bicycles due cultural norms and the difficulty of riding ungeared bicycles in the hilly terrain of the village, and are thus constrained to moving their produce and products on their heads, often while also carrying a baby, or to paying for transport. Because of their weaker position in society women also often suffer more in economic terms than men from personal “misfortune”, and find it more difficult to recover from setbacks, affecting their abilities to accumulate start-up capital and to keep working capital in existing businesses. Households headed by women are generally less able to produce significant quantities of crops for sale than those with access to male labour, and such women often turn to relatively low barrier, low profit IGAs to supplement their incomes – opportunities for remarriage are limited as women outnumber men. Some widows and divorcees do undertake relatively profitable non-farm IGAs, but successful widows are at risk of exploitation by their 63
late husbands’ families. Married women are also vulnerable in that they often do not have an equal say in when or how a business or assets which are co-owned with their husbands are closed down or disposed of in times of stress, particularly when a marriage is breaking up. Old age and failing strength, health, and eyesight were cited as barriers to continuing with any economic activity. However, those involved in the most capital intensive non-farm IGAs, as well as those requiring experience and skill tend to be older. Nonetheless, other older people are involved in some of the least profitable, lowest entry activities which they are pushed into as a result of their decreasing ability to farm, although this “push” can also be a positive force if other, younger household members are able to continue with farming, leaving the older person free to diversify and explore other alternatives. There was no clear pattern between participation in non-farm IGAs and education, although most people place considerable importance on it for their children. Lack of skills was perceived to cover a range, from specialist or new skills, such as jam making to very basic skills, particularly amongst older women, typically with no or little formal education. 64
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N A T U R A L R E S O U R C E S I N
Page 3 and 4:
5. VILLAGE LEVEL FINDINGS: KITAMBUZ
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ACRONYMS CAO CBO CERUDEB DDP DFID D
Page 7 and 8:
The remaining introductory sections
Page 9 and 10:
in the west of the district, and be
Page 11 and 12:
Production 10 ; Education; Health &
Page 13 and 14:
1.7 History The general area that i
Page 15 and 16:
district money was unaccounted for
Page 17 and 18: pastoralist households have also st
Page 19 and 20: feasible for those who live far awa
Page 21 and 22: The RRCS started in 1992 and is imp
Page 23 and 24: with other sources of funding alrea
Page 25 and 26: een any negative effects 43 . Howev
Page 27 and 28: qualified teachers 46 , but this re
Page 29 and 30: Data collection took place over thr
Page 31 and 32: the district database. The second c
Page 33 and 34: Processing of fruit is almost non-e
Page 35 and 36: able to train young people more eff
Page 37 and 38: The Community Services Department w
Page 39 and 40: 4.2 Income Generating Activities Th
Page 41 and 42: Box 1. Michael Dunga, coffee trader
Page 43 and 44: Box 3. The Kamakuma Women’s Agric
Page 45 and 46: Box 6. The Kooki Women’s Water &
Page 47 and 48: 4.3.3 Services There are a small nu
Page 49 and 50: purchasing power of the local marke
Page 51 and 52: Lack of skills was not cited by any
Page 53 and 54: pushed some towards forming groups
Page 55 and 56: children getting thin and dying, le
Page 57 and 58: Box 12. Mr Muza, trader Mr Muza is
Page 59 and 60: Box 15. Theresa Okundi, basket make
Page 61 and 62: 5.4 Farm and non-farm livelihoods A
Page 63 and 64: 5.5.1 Poverty Poverty in its most b
Page 65 and 66: esult of a special skill 127 , or t
Page 67: 5.5.6 Enabling factors At the end o
Page 71 and 72: Small-scale manufacturing enterpris
Page 73 and 74: shopkeeping, or other retail activi
Page 75 and 76: Old age and failing strength, healt
Page 77 and 78: APPENDIX 1a Research team Dr Kate M
Page 79 and 80: APPENDIX 2a. Attendance at the comm
Page 81 and 82: APPENDIX 3. Attendance at the group
Page 83 and 84: APPENDIX 5. Gender analysis of key
Page 85 and 86: APPENDIX 7. Members of the Kooki Wo
Page 87 and 88: APPENDIX 9. Gender analysis of barr
Page 89 and 90: APPENDIX 11. Definitions of wealth/
Page 91 and 92: APPENDIX 13. Members of the Kitambu
Page 93: FS 54723 ISO 9001 Joanne Downard En
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