Thumbnail Image

Economic transformation and diversification towards off-farm income in rural and urban areas

A global update with a focus on sub-Saharan Africa












De La O Campos, A.P., Admasu, Y., Covarrubias, K.A., Davis, B. & Diaz, A.M. 2023. Economic transformation and diversification towards off-farm income in rural and urban areas  A global update with a focus on sub-Saharan Africa. FAO Agricultural Development Economics Working Paper, No. 23-05. Rome, FAO.




Also available in:
No results found.

Related items

Showing items related by metadata.

  • Thumbnail Image
    Book (series)
    Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals requires investing in rural areas
    FAO Agricultural Development Economics Policy Brief 3
    2017
    Also available in:
    No results found.

    Rural-based economic activity can be just as effective for poverty reduction as that of urban sectors. Since the 1990s, rural transformation has lifted nearly as many people out of poverty as urban development. Many more will be able to climb out of poverty if greater priority is given to public investments in rural areas. In order to help boost small-scale farm productivity and incomes, and to create vast amounts of off-farm employment in expanding segments of food supply and value chains, new strategies are needed to leverage the untapped potential of food systems through agro-industrial development.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Book (stand-alone)
    Rural migration in sub-Saharan Africa: patterns, drivers and relation to structural transformation
    Rural employment working paper
    2019
    Also available in:
    No results found.

    Sub-Saharan Africa has a long history of internal and international migratory movements. Migration patterns and dynamics from, to and between rural areas are profoundly differentiated across regions, and flows have considerably evolved over time. Yet, more recently, rural migration takes place in the unique situation of a major rural and urban demographic increase, which results in critical socio-economic and environmental challenges. In this context, intertwined migration drivers emerge and call for a better understanding of on-going dynamics. This working paper draws on a combination of literature review and data analysis, building on the results of the Atlas "Rural Africa in motion. Dynamics and drivers of migration South of the Sahara". This mixed approach is used to propose a conceptual framework based on past, current and future drivers of migration, then to examine observed patterns of rural migration and finally to discuss drivers’ characteristics and dynamics from case studies and existing datasets.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Policy brief
    Africa’s unique transformation from a household livelihood strategies perspective 2023
    Also available in:
    No results found.

    Livelihood diversification continues to be the norm rather than the exception globally. This means that, to be successful, livelihood support interventions need to consider households’ decisions in terms of the distribution of labour, time and risk management strategies. The main message of this policy brief is that, at similar levels of gross domestic product (GDP) per capita and of agricultural value-added in GDP, rural households in sub-Saharan African countries show greater specialization in on-farm activities and lower participation in non-agricultural wage employment. Therefore, for African households to shift to opportunity-led pathways, there is urgent need to boost social protection and invest in education, while enhancing the agricultural productivity of small-scale producers and value addition.

Users also downloaded

Showing related downloaded files

No results found.