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Blossoming Towns

Author

Listed:
  • Bishop, Menna

    (University of Warwick)

  • Moneke, Niclas

    (University of Oxford)

  • Zipfel, Céline

    (House of Sustainable Society (HoSS))

Abstract

Towns and cities create jobs and income. Can the arrival of new jobs also create a town? We study large agro-industrial labour demand shocks in rural sub-Saharan Africa: flower farms in Kenya. Rising production costs in Europe generate a boom in Kenyan cut-flower export production, providing stable wage jobs for mostly low-skilled women. We exploit the specific requirements of cut-flower production to track the arrival and growth of greenhouses over the last two decades. We find large increases in wage employment and home-to-market transformation within agriculture, especially for women. Urbanisation unfolds: population growth and in-migration are flanked by an emerging private rental market for housing. Housing quality and infrastructure access improve, wealth accumulates. Educational investments increase while fertility decreases. Suggestive evidence highlights that the resulting towns initiate occupational change, motivate forward-looking investment and even survive flower farm closures – indicating towns that can sustain themselves as centres of economic activity.

Suggested Citation

  • Bishop, Menna & Moneke, Niclas & Zipfel, Céline, 2026. "Blossoming Towns," HoSS Working Paper Series 2026-4, Stockholm School of Economics, House of Sustainable Society (HoSS).
    • Handle: RePEc:hhs:hamisu:2026_004
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    Keywords

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    JEL classification:

    • J21 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Labor Force and Employment, Size, and Structure
    • O14 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Industrialization; Manufacturing and Service Industries; Choice of Technology
    • O18 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Urban, Rural, Regional, and Transportation Analysis; Housing; Infrastructure
    • Q13 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Agriculture - - - Agricultural Markets and Marketing; Cooperatives; Agribusiness
    • R11 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - General Regional Economics - - - Regional Economic Activity: Growth, Development, Environmental Issues, and Changes

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