Analysis on the Choice of Livelihood Strategy for Peasant Households Renting out Farmland: Evidence from Western Poverty-Stricken Areas in China

Jie Cai,Ni Li,Xianli Xia,Ting Wang,Hongqiang Lv,Yazhi Chen

doi:10.3390/su11051424

Abstract

Investigating the choice of livelihood strategies has great significance for improving the living standards of peasant households who rent out farmland. This study evaluates the impact of renting-out land on households’ livelihood strategies in China’s western poverty-stricken areas. Data were obtained from cross sectional survey of 585 field survey data from peasant households who rent out land. The K-means clustering method was used to classify the livelihood strategies of the sample households. In view of sustainable livelihood framework, this paper used combination weighting model based on game theory to calculate the quo of households’ livelihood capital. The Multinomial Logistic Regression was used to explore the relationship between livelihood capitals and livelihood strategies. Results show that: livelihood strategy of households who rent out the land can be divided into “agricultural-led” livelihood strategy, “working-oriented” livelihood strategy and “part-time” livelihood strategy. Additionally, the results of Multinomial Logistic Regression show that the households with high human capital and financial capital tend to choose the “working-oriented” livelihood strategy and the households with high natural capital tend to choose the “agricultural-led” livelihood strategy. Therefore, in order to realize the sustainable livelihood of these households, different policy support should be proposed based on the heterogeneity of households in the process of land transfer.

Highlights

Since the reform and opening up, the transfer of land contractual management rights in China have experienced a process from prohibition to acquiescence to encouragement
With reference to the DFID model, combined with the social and economic development of the western poverty-stricken areas and the households’ livelihood characteristics, this paper divides the livelihood capital of households who rent out the land into five categories: human capital, natural capital, physical capital, financial capital and social capital
There is a great debate about whether the households who rent out the land can choose the suitable livelihood strategy in western poverty-stricken areas of China

Summary

Introduction

Since the reform and opening up, the transfer of land contractual management rights in China have experienced a process from prohibition to acquiescence to encouragement. Studies have shown that land resources are still the most important livelihood capital for farmers in western poverty-stricken areas. If the households who rent out the land cannot find a suitable livelihood strategy, the interests of these farmers will be damaged to some extent. Rational households who rent out the land tend to choose a high-return livelihood strategy. Subject to resource endowments and social systems, some farmers choose a low-return livelihood strategy. The existing research rarely has enough evidence to support that the households who rent out the land can choose the livelihood strategy reasonably. Households with more physical capital and natural capital tend to choose agricultural-led livelihood strategies. While households who have more social capital, human capital and financial capital are more likely to choose other non-agricultural-led livelihood strategies [8,9]

Methods

Results

Conclusion