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Pathways into and out of Poverty: A Study of Rural Household Wealth Dynamics in Kenya

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  • Milu Muyanga
  • T. S. Jayne
  • William J. Burke

Abstract

This study identifies the factors associated with smallholder farm households that have risen out of poverty or descended into poverty between 1997 and 2007 in Kenya. The study uses data from a nationwide balanced panel of 1,275 households and data from detailed retrospective 'life history' survey of 84 households that had experienced either an appreciable improvement or decline in their asset wealth over the 10-year panel period. The results indicate that household welfare dynamics are associated with a disparate set of idiosyncratic and unexpected shocks, such as death and chronic illness, demographic factors, proximity to infrastructural facilities, as well as intergenerational wealth transfers.

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  • Milu Muyanga & T. S. Jayne & William J. Burke, 2013. "Pathways into and out of Poverty: A Study of Rural Household Wealth Dynamics in Kenya," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 49(10), pages 1358-1374, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:jdevst:v:49:y:2013:i:10:p:1358-1374
    DOI: 10.1080/00220388.2013.812197
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    1. Smale, Melinda & Mathenge, Mary K. & Jayne, Thomas S. & Magalhaes, Eduardo Castelo & Olwande, John & Kirimi, Lilian & Kamau, Mercy W. & Githuku, James, 2012. "Income and Poverty Impacts of USAID-Funded Programs to Promote Maize, Horticulture, and Dairy Enterprises in Kenya, 2004-2010," Food Security International Development Working Papers 121864, Michigan State University, Department of Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics.
    2. Bethelhem Legesse Debela, 2017. "Factors Affecting Differences in Livestock Asset Ownership Between Male- and Female-Headed Households in Northern Ethiopia," The European Journal of Development Research, Palgrave Macmillan;European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI), vol. 29(2), pages 328-347, April.
    3. Wilhelm Östberg & Olivia Howland & Joseph Mduma & Dan Brockington, 2018. "Tracing Improving Livelihoods in Rural Africa Using Local Measures of Wealth: A Case Study from Central Tanzania, 1991–2016," Land, MDPI, vol. 7(2), pages 1-26, April.
    4. Chapoto, Antony & Banda, Diana J. & Haggblade, Steven & Hamukwala, Priscilla, 2011. "Factors Affecting Poverty Dynamics in Rural Zambia," Food Security Collaborative Working Papers 109888, Michigan State University, Department of Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics.
    5. Mohammad Rondhi & Pravitasari Anjar Pratiwi & Vivi Trisna Handini & Aryo Fajar Sunartomo & Subhan Arif Budiman, 2018. "Agricultural Land Conversion, Land Economic Value, and Sustainable Agriculture: A Case Study in East Java, Indonesia," Land, MDPI, vol. 7(4), pages 1-19, November.
    6. P. P. Braga, Daniel & Pokorny, Benno & Porro, Roberto & Vidal, Edson, 2023. "Good life in the Amazon? A critical reflection on the standard of living of cocoa and cattle-based smallholders in Pará, Brazil," World Development Perspectives, Elsevier, vol. 31(C).
    7. Ayala Wineman & Nicole M. Mason & Justus Ochieng & Lilian Kirimi, 2017. "Weather extremes and household welfare in rural Kenya," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 9(2), pages 281-300, April.
    8. Amanda Lenhardt & Andrew Shepherd, 2013. "What has happened to the poorest 50%?," Global Development Institute Working Paper Series 18413, GDI, The University of Manchester.
    9. Lubungu, Mary & Chapoto, Antony & Tembo, Gelson, 2012. "Smallholder Farmers Participation in Livestock Markets: The Case of Zambian Farmers," Food Security Collaborative Working Papers 140902, Michigan State University, Department of Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics.
    10. Gamel Abdul-Nasser Salifu, 2019. "The Political Economy Dynamics of Rural Household Income Diversification: A Review of the International Literature," Research in World Economy, Research in World Economy, Sciedu Press, vol. 10(3), pages 273-290, December.
    11. Sitko, Nicholas J. & Jayne, T.S., 2014. "Structural transformation or elite land capture? The growth of “emergent” farmers in Zambia," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 48(C), pages 194-202.
    12. Gitonga, Zachary M. & De Groote, Hugo & Kassie, Menale & Tefera, Tadele, 2013. "Impact of metal silos on households’ maize storage, storage losses and food security: An application of a propensity score matching," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 43(C), pages 44-55.
    13. Chalmers K. Mulwa & Milu Muyanga & Martine Visser, 2021. "The role of large traders in driving sustainable agricultural intensification in smallholder farms: Evidence from Kenya," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 52(2), pages 329-341, March.
    14. Harris, David & Orr, Alastair, 2014. "Is rainfed agriculture really a pathway from poverty?," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 123(C), pages 84-96.
    15. Birhanu, Mulugeta Y. & Ambaw, Birhanu & Mulu, Yohannis, 2017. "Dynamics of multidimensional child poverty and its triggers: Evidence from Ethiopia using Multilevel Mixed Effect Model," MPRA Paper 79377, University Library of Munich, Germany.

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