Rural household sources of income, livelihoods strategies and institutional constraints in different commodity contexts - Institutional Constraints to Small Farmer Development in Southern Africa - page 33

are more mobile than married people, thus exhibiting greater propensity for migrating for
employment.
Better-paid jobs and most non-farm activities require formal schooling, usually to
completion of primary school or beyond and also tend to favour men over women (Davis,
2003). Positive correlation between education and participation in rural non-farm
activities is often reported. This is supported by empirical findings by Bryceson (2002)
in both Malawi and Ethiopia, Sanchez (2005) in Bolivia, and Matsumoto et al. (2006)
in Kenya. They showed that the level of education indicated in years of formal education,
enhances household members' capability to exploit better income generating opportunities.
Education is linked to information acquisition, skills development and human resource
development (Schwarze, 2005).
2.4.2 Household variables
In rural or traditional societies the household is the primary decision making unit (Hebinck
and Lent, 2007). According to Matsumoto et al. (2006), households' access to land,
asset endowments, demographic composition and transfers determines the capability to
participate in non-farm activities.
Land and other assets are the key requirements for entry into most local non-farm activities
in rural areas. Economic theory of investment supports the view that household endowment
in assets places them in a relatively better position to respond to incentives (Parkin, 2008).
This implies capacities in terms of human capital, physical capital, social capital and
organizational capital (Sanchez, 2005). Household diversification into non-farm income
varies in extent and nature based on relative household wealth (Escobal, 2001). Wealth-
differentiated barriers to entry into non-farm activities, as noted by Holden et al. (2004),
have been noted in Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, South Africa
and Tanzania.
A household may have the incentive to participate in non-farm employment, say because of
higher returns to labour, but if the capacities are not in place (such as capital), the household
will not be able to take advantage of them (Barrett et al., 2001). Therefore participation in
non-farm activities is directly related to households' asset endowments. Although having
various assets could be a determinant of participation, it could also be a result of additional
incomes from non-farm activities (Barrett et al. , 2001).
Land-constrained households resort to local non-farm activities and wage employment to
earn a living (Matsumoto et al., 2006). If a household has limited access to land, the only
way to earn income is through adoption of non-farm activities. Thus, it is presumed that
land size and participation in non-farm activities are negatively related.