IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/wdevel/v158y2022ics0305750x22002029.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

What do we know about rural and informal non-farming labour? Evidence from a mixed methods study of artisanal and small-scale mining in Northwest Tanzania

Author

Listed:
  • Goetz, Julian M.

Abstract

Despite its relevance for millions living in rural areas in the Global South, scholarly knowledge on the dynamics and structure of informal non-farming rural labour and its impact on poverty is limited. However, such knowledge is paramount for programming effective poverty-reduction and formalisation policies. This article investigates such dynamics through the lens of artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) by analysing two case study sites in Northwest Tanzania. It presents and analyses qualitative and quantitative primary data collected during five months of fieldwork, drawing on political economy analysis. The article empirically challenges both scholarship championing self-employment as the main and only informal labour relation in the Global South as well as literature portraying ASGM as potentially poverty-reducing. Its main argument is that waged labour is common in ASGM and that the type of ASGM job linked to a specific labour relation translates into heterogeneous labour market outcomes. The article shows that a number of ASGM jobs such as waged processing activities feature heterogeneous and much lower incomes than the high average incomes for diggers reported by previous contributions. Moreover, it finds that workers alternate between waged and self-employment. Both dimensions are important, because two-thirds of the sampled ASGM labour force engage in waged labour and one-third in processing tasks. The article empirically grounds the debate on informal non-farming rural labour markets. In so doing, it highlights that understanding internal differentiation and labour market structures is paramount for formalisation processes given the different needs of distinct groups. Lastly, this study emphasises the necessity to combine qualitative and quantitative data for work on the nexus of labour markets and poverty.

Suggested Citation

  • Goetz, Julian M., 2022. "What do we know about rural and informal non-farming labour? Evidence from a mixed methods study of artisanal and small-scale mining in Northwest Tanzania," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 158(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:wdevel:v:158:y:2022:i:c:s0305750x22002029
    DOI: 10.1016/j.worlddev.2022.106012
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0305750X22002029
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.worlddev.2022.106012?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Banchirigah, Sadia Mohammed, 2008. "Challenges with eradicating illegal mining in Ghana: A perspective from the grassroots," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 33(1), pages 29-38, March.
    2. Boris Verbrugge, 2015. "The Economic Logic of Persistent Informality: Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining in the Southern Philippines," Development and Change, International Institute of Social Studies, vol. 46(5), pages 1023-1046, September.
    3. Reardon, Thomas, 1997. "Using evidence of household income diversification to inform study of the rural nonfarm labor market in Africa," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 25(5), pages 735-747, May.
    4. Matteo Rizzo & Blandina Kilama & Marc Wuyts, 2015. "The Invisibility of Wage Employment in Statistics on the Informal Economy in Africa: Causes and Consequences," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 51(2), pages 149-161, February.
    5. Bryceson, Deborah Fahy & Jønsson, Jesper Bosse, 2010. "Gold Digging Careers in Rural East Africa: Small-Scale Miners' Livelihood Choices," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 38(3), pages 379-392, March.
    6. Kuntala Lahiri-Dutt, 2018. "Extractive peasants: reframing informal artisanal and small-scale mining debates," Third World Quarterly, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 39(8), pages 1561-1582, August.
    7. Jesper Bosse Jønsson & Niels Fold, 2009. "Handling uncertainty: Policy and organizational practices in Tanzania's small‐scale gold mining sector," Natural Resources Forum, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 33(3), pages 211-220, August.
    8. Fisher, Eleanor & Mwaipopo, Rosemarie & Mutagwaba, Wilson & Nyange, David & Yaron, Gil, 2009. ""The ladder that sends us to wealth": Artisanal mining and poverty reduction in Tanzania," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 34(1-2), pages 32-38.
    9. Rizzo, Matteo, 2017. "Taken For A Ride: Grounding Neoliberalism, Precarious Labour, and Public Transport in an African Metropolis," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780198794240, Decembrie.
    10. Geenen, Sara & Stoop, Nik & Verpoorten, Marijke, 2021. "How much do artisanal miners earn? An inquiry among Congolese gold miners," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 70(C).
    11. Carlos Oya, 2013. "Rural wage employment in Africa: methodological issues and emerging evidence," Review of African Political Economy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 40(136), pages 251-273, June.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Hiroko Gono & Tsutomu Takane & Dickson Mazibuko, 2023. "Casual Wage Labour, Food Security, and Sustainable Rural Livelihoods in Malawi," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(7), pages 1-25, March.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Hilson, Gavin & Hilson, Abigail & Maconachie, Roy, 2018. "Opportunity or necessity? Conceptualizing entrepreneurship at African small-scale mines," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 131(C), pages 286-302.
    2. Van Bockstael, Steven, 2019. "Land grabbing “from below”? Illicit artisanal gold mining and access to land in post-conflict Côte d’Ivoire," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 81(C), pages 904-914.
    3. Poignant, Adrian, 2023. "Small-scale mining and agriculture: Evidence from northwestern Tanzania," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 83(C).
    4. Katherine C. Malpeli & Peter G. Chirico, 2013. "The influence of geomorphology on the role of women at artisanal and small‐scale mine sites," Natural Resources Forum, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 37(1), pages 43-54, February.
    5. Geenen, Sara & Stoop, Nik & Verpoorten, Marijke, 2021. "How much do artisanal miners earn? An inquiry among Congolese gold miners," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 70(C).
    6. Geenen, Sara, 2014. "Dispossession, displacement and resistance: Artisanal miners in a gold concession in South-Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 40(C), pages 90-99.
    7. Fernando Morante-Carballo & Néstor Montalván-Burbano & Maribel Aguilar-Aguilar & Paúl Carrión-Mero, 2022. "A Bibliometric Analysis of the Scientific Research on Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(13), pages 1-29, July.
    8. Kilosho Buraye, Janvier & Stoop, Nik & Verpoorten, Marijke, 2017. "Defusing the social minefield of gold sites in Kamituga, South Kivu. From legal pluralism to the re-making of institutions?," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 53(C), pages 356-368.
    9. Gavin Hilson & Chris Garforth, 2012. "‘Agricultural Poverty’ and the Expansion of Artisanal Mining in Sub-Saharan Africa: Experiences from Southwest Mali and Southeast Ghana," Population Research and Policy Review, Springer;Southern Demographic Association (SDA), vol. 31(3), pages 435-464, June.
    10. Corbett, Tony & O'Faircheallaigh, Ciaran & Regan, Anthony, 2017. "‘Designated areas’ and the regulation of artisanal and small-scale mining," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 68(C), pages 393-401.
    11. Tschakert, Petra, 2016. "Shifting Discourses of Vilification and the Taming of Unruly Mining Landscapes in Ghana," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 86(C), pages 123-132.
    12. Pokorny, Benno & von Lübke, Christian & Dayamba, Sidzabda Djibril & Dickow, Helga, 2019. "All the gold for nothing? Impacts of mining on rural livelihoods in Northern Burkina Faso," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 119(C), pages 23-39.
    13. Van den Broeck, Goedele & Swinnen, Johan & Maertens, Miet, 2017. "Global value chains, large-scale farming, and poverty: Long-term effects in Senegal," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 66(C), pages 97-107.
    14. Ruth Zárate Rueda & Yolima Ivonne Beltrán Villamizar & Luis Eduardo Becerra Ardila, 2023. "Neo-Extractivism and Formalization of Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining—The Case of the Santurbán Moorland (Colombia)," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(15), pages 1-16, July.
    15. Saldarriaga-Isaza, Adrián & Villegas-Palacio, Clara & Arango, Santiago, 2013. "The public good dilemma of a non-renewable common resource: A look at the facts of artisanal gold mining," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 38(2), pages 224-232.
    16. Hook, Andrew, 2019. "The multidimensionality of exclusion in the small-scale gold mining sector in Guyana: Institutional reform, landlordism, and mineral uncertainty," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 123(C), pages 1-1.
    17. Verbrugge, Boris & Besmanos, Beverly, 2016. "Formalizing artisanal and small-scale mining: Whither the workforce?," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 47(C), pages 134-141.
    18. Perks, Rachel, 2019. "“Mining is in the belly”: The pursuit of individual wealth in Rwanda," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 63(C), pages 1-1.
    19. Eduful, Michael & Alsharif, Kamal & Eduful, Alexander & Acheampong, Michael & Eduful, Joyce & Mazumder, Lubana, 2020. "The Illegal Artisanal and Small-scale mining (Galamsey) ‘Menace’ in Ghana: Is Military-Style Approach the Answer?," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 68(C).
    20. Mark L. Wilson & Elisha Renne & Carla Roncoli & Peter Agyei-Baffour & Emmanuel Yamoah Tenkorang, 2015. "Integrated Assessment of Artisanal and Small-Scale Gold Mining in Ghana — Part 3: Social Sciences and Economics," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 12(7), pages 1-24, July.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:wdevel:v:158:y:2022:i:c:s0305750x22002029. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/worlddev .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.