Livelihood Diversification Strategies Research Articles

Socio Economic Contribution of Lowland Bamboo (Oxythenanthera Abyssinica) in Pawe District, Ethiopia

The Study was conducted in Pawe district, Benishangul-Gumuz National Regional State, northwestern Ethiopia. The objective of this study was to evaluate socio-economic aspects of low land bamboo (Oxythenanthera abyssinica). For this study, two villages were selected based on random sampling technique., Data were collected from a total of 136 households. Households were selected using simple random sampling technique. The collected raw data were systematically coded and analyzed using descriptive statistics. A weighed direct matrix likert scale ranking of species was used to evaluate low land bamboo and others tree species based on multipurpose value. Inferential statistical, linear regression model was employed to find out the relationship between incomes generated from Low Land Bamboo and some selected socioeconomic factors (independent variables). The study result indicated that Out of the sampled households, 50 % and 37.5% of the respondents ranked Mangifera indica and Lowland bamboo (Oxythenanthera abyssinica) first and second, respectively while Melia azedirachta L. and Cordia africana were preferred third (8.1%) and fourth (2.9%), respectively. Among the socio-economic characteristics considered land holding size was positively and highly significantly related to income generated by households (p < 0.01). Therefore, the policies and strategies that improve the welfare of rural people especially the poor and the land less HHs and use of bamboo for natural resource conservation should be given attention. Additionally, government and NGOs should support and encourage cultivation of lowland bamboo and lowland bamboo based activities as part of the diversified livelihood strategies. Keywords: Low Land Bamboo, socio economics, income. DOI: 10.7176/JNSR/10-9-03 Publication date: May 31 st 2020

Exploring Livelihood Resilience and Its Impact on Livelihood Strategy in Rural China

In an effort to mitigate ecological environments and improve human well-being, the Chinese government’s largest-ever relocation and settlement programme is underway. Measuring livelihood resilience and further assessing its impact hold the key to strengthening adaptive capacity and well-being in poverty resettlements. Using a household survey of contiguous poor areas in Southern Shaanxi, China, this research proposes a framework to examine livelihood resilience and its impact on livelihood strategies in the context of poverty alleviation resettlement. To provide more comprehensive empirical evidence, we drew on three dimensions of the previously proposed livelihood resilience framework: buffer capacity, self-organizing capacity, and learning capacity. The results show that capital endowments, social cooperation networks, transportation convenience, and skills acquired from education and rural–urban migration can significantly affect the construction of livelihood resilience. The resilience of households that were relocated because of ecological restoration is the highest, followed by households relocated because of disasters; households relocated because of poverty reduction attempts have the lowest resilience. As for indicators of livelihood resilience, physical capital assets and previous work experience play a major role in household livelihood strategies for pursuing non-farming activities, while household size, stable income, social capital, and information sharing result in diversified livelihood strategies. These findings provide policy implications for enhancing livelihood resilience capacities and improving the scope of available livelihood strategies to emerge from the poverty trap and to adapt to the new environment.

Social capital reduces vulnerability in rural coastal communities of Solomon Islands

Rural island communities are generally regarded as the most vulnerable groups affected by climate change. This perception arises due to them often being in less developed areas with high levels of exposure to stressors, while reportedly lacking the means to cope with these stressors. Studies which use developed-country yardsticks, such as those used in past IPCC-based assessments, when measuring vulnerability in less developed states will however inevitably over-pronounce its effects in such areas. The sustainable livelihoods approach provides an alternate means of determining vulnerability using capital assets such as social capital. The presence of these assets enables communities to pursue diverse livelihood strategies which ultimately serve to reduce their vulnerability. This study seeks to measure attributes of social capital in five marine dependent communities of Solomon Islands. This was done through a questionnaire survey of 110 respondents, which comprised of 15 questions related to social capital. Question scores were equally balanced and also contributed equally to each of the five indicators of social capital identified in the literature-namely community cohesion, gender equity, leadership, decision making, and equal access to services and resources. The results indicated an overall social capital vulnerability score of 0.379, where 0 indicates the lowest possible vulnerability score and 1 the most vulnerable. Community cohesion decreased vulnerability the most within these communities, followed by gender equity, leadership, equal access to services and resources and decision making. Our results indicate a high degree of social capital in Solomon Islands communities, and therefore its importance as an inherent measure for households to cope with both climate and non-climate related stressors. Climate change directed policy should therefore be developed with the aim of preserving social capital as it provides a culturally embedded means of deterring vulnerability, at the risk of more expensive and possibly less pragmatic alternative measures.

CLIMATE CHANGE VULNERABILITY AND RESPONSES OF FISHERFOLK COMMUNITIES IN THE SOUTH-EASTERN COAST OF BANGLADESH

Climate change is an ongoing threat across the earth–especially those who depend on fishing. This study aims to understand how fishery-dependent communities in the South-Eastern coast of Bangladesh build resilience against environmental stresses, and in what ways their strategies sometimes fail. A composite index approach has been used to calculate livelihood vulnerability. Results reveal that exposure to floods and cyclones, sensitivity and lack of adaptive capacity concerning physical, natural, and financial capital and diverse livelihood strategies construe livelihood vulnerability in different ways depending on the context. The study reveals that over the last ten years, 20% household heads have changed their fishing profession, where dependency to non-fisheries livelihoods such as rickshaw pooling and small business is growing in the studied fishing villages. However, many of them are applying their traditional knowledge to cope with the changing climate stress and in conserving the biodiversity of the coast. In order to strengthen adaptive capacity and to build resilience, government and the external agencies need to facilitate the existing traditional knowledge and systems with which the fishermen communities have been historically responding to the environmental stresses.

Factors Affecting Livelihood Diversification Decision: The Case of Kuormuk and Homosha Districts of Assosa Zone, Beneshangul Gumuz Regional State, Ethiopia

Ethiopia’s agricultural productivity is considered low despite the presence of various agricultural policies. These policies focus mainly on on-farm agricultural development to the neglect of rich opportunities for non-agricultural livelihood diversification activities. Livelihood diversification is a strategy that can boost farmers’ income and promote sustainable land management practices. This study was conducted to assess the various factors that affect households’ decisions on livelihood diversifications the case of Kuormuk and Homosha districts of Assosa zone, Beneshangul Gumuz regional state, western Ethiopia. Data was gathered by household survey from 376 sample households of 13 randomly selected rural kebeles of the Homosha and Kuormuk Districts through structural questionnaires. The alternative livelihood strategies that were used by the study households were agriculture only, and agriculture plus other activities (off-farm and non-farm activities). Binary Logit model was employed in identifying the determinants of rural livelihood diversification decision. From 13 hypothesized explanatory variables, 5 variables were found to have significant effect in determining diversification of household livelihood decisions. Accordingly, age of the household head, access to credit, receiving remittance and land size have negative association with livelihood diversification strategy. Whereas, getting training has a positively influence on households choice of livelihood diversification. Therefore, the findings of this imply that rural households’ development policies should consider off-farm and non-farm livelihood activities in addition to agriculture.

Reviewing land access livelihood diversification strategies and factors influencing wellbeing of rural households in Mnquma, Eastern Cape: implications to extension agents

ABSTRACT The aim of this paper is to analyse the impact of land access and livelihood strategies of rural households to well-being of households ' implications to extension agents in Mnquma, Eastern Cape. A cross-sectional research design was utilised to collect data from 105 randomly selected households. Descriptive statistics was then used to profile livelihood strategies and characteristics such as age, gender, years of farm experience, the availability of water and land for crop production and the income farmers generate from the sale of crops produced. Multinomial logistic regression results demonstrated that land size and location have a positive significant influence (p = 0.001) on household well-being. It is concluded that though land size has a positive influence on well-being, expanding farms through adding plots and distant farming hinders the attainment of well-being. Moreover, households with large number of dependents and those working in exclusive farming are disadvantaged in the attainment of well-being. There is therefore room to enhance progress in attainment of well-being through reducing the distance to farms and promoting diversification of livelihood strategies. The Eastern Cape department of Agriculture and Rural Development is advised to support distant farmers with settlements in their destinations. Furthermore, extension agents do play a significant role in promoting livelihoods of rural households and contribute towards improved land access. Keywords: Land access, livelihood strategy, rural households, South Africa

Understanding Livelihood Diversification Patterns among Smallholder Farm Households in Southern Ethiopia

Smallholder farm households face an increasing need of looking for alternative income sources to supplement their small scale on-farm incomes. However, livelihood diversification is a complex phenomenon and it involves different forms. This study, therefore, delves to realize the patterns of livelihood diversification strategies adopted by the smallholder farmers at Kembata-Tembaro zone, Southern Ethiopia. The study was based on cross-sectional survey data from 384 farm households that were selected through a combination of three-stages: cluster, simple random, and proportional to the size of population sampling techniques. A mix of instruments including interview- schedule, focus group discussions, key informant interviews and field observations were used to acquire primary data. Descriptive statistics in combination with multidimensional approaches involving cluster analysis were used to analyze the quantitative data. The qualitative data were analyzed using word descriptions and verbatim discussions. It was found that the diversification patterns of the smallholder farm households in the study area took different forms involving alteration of land use patterns, intensification of crops and livestock productions, and non/off-farm activities. Superiority order of livelihood strategies in terms of the average annual cash income obtained by the households was set. Accordingly, commercial crop stands first followed by livestock rearing and subsistence crop production as second and third, respectively. It was suggested that livelihood diversification can only be a viable strategy to achieve sustainable rural livelihoods if the farmers are capacitated so that they can choose the right remunerative livelihood strategy among the existing options.

Does Diversification Lead to Livelihood Security in Fishing-Farming Communities? Insight from the Senegal River Delta

Livelihood diversification is often regarded as a mechanism to reduce poverty, making rural communities more resilient to resource fluctuations. However, despite engaging in diversification, many rural households continue to grapple with poverty and vulnerability. We explore the extent to which livelihood diversification reduces vulnerability of resource-dependent livelihoods and the factors shaping these outcomes. We specifically examine fishing households also engaged in farming as a supplementary income-generating activity in three communities in the Senegal River Delta. We apply a framework built on the concepts associated with livelihood security (i.e., income, asset, food, and nutritional security). We address the question of how and why engaging in farming as a livelihood diversification strategy enhances the livelihood security of some fishing households but not others. Overall, we found that commercial horticulture (irrigated) rather than rain-fed agriculture was more effective at reducing household seasonal vulnerability to food and income insecurity, in addition to improving nutritional security at the community level. Furthermore, households that collected high farm revenues were able to build their productive assets by purchasing fishing gears and livestock. Underlying factors shaping these outcomes included risk, crop diversity, household debt accrued, livestock holdings, and technical knowledge.

Rural Youth Livelihood Opportunities and Impediments of Livelihood Strategy Choice in North Western Ethiopia

In Ethiopia, attempts made by youths and local government to diversify rural youths livelihood strategies are rare at operational level. Even few project launched for youths so far with the help of nongovernmental and governmental organizations are mostly failed. The failures of these projects are mainly attributed towards the start up of the business which held an assumption of nationwide livelihood opportunities and constraints disregarding local level peculiarities. As a result youths in rural areas become victim of unemployment which forced them to take other desperate options of rural-urban and international illegal migration. Hence, this study was meant investigate local level livelihood diversification strategy opportunities and the determinants of youth livelihood strategy choice in four selected districts of East Gojjam Zone of Amhara regional state, Ethiopia. Employing cross sectional mixed research approaches, data were gathered through survey and Key informant methods from a total of 388 sample and key informant interviewee recruited from eleven Kebeles of the four districts. Data were analyzed using multinomial logistic regression, ranking methods and other descriptive statics. Findings revealed that youths in the study area are engaged in few finger counted income generating activities, among countless opportunities of on-farm off- farm and non- farm economic sectors available for rural youths. Youth are engaged not only in those livelihood strategies usually regarded as common, the strategies that they currently choose are extremely laborious and unproductive. The study further revealed that, the determinant factors behind youths participation in few laborious and less productive sectors are low educational status ,lack of access to institutional credit, lack of market linkage , poor information access, and rural urban linkage, low total annual income, high dependency ratio in the family, long distance to the market center, poor road network and inaccessibility of transport facilities, and societal allocation of livelihoods on gender based criteria were found the significant determinant factor for youth livelihood strategy choice. Hence serious attention should be given for participatory approaches in identifying local level opportunities and in reducing youths' constraints for participating in diversified livelihood strategies. Keywords: rural youth, livelihood strategy, livelihood diversification determinants, Gojjam, Ethiopia DOI : 10.7176/JPID/51-03 Publication date: November 30 th 2019

Income diversification strategies among pastoralists in Central Asia: Findings from Kyrgyzstan

The loss of land productivity is one of the key challenges facing land use policy-makers worldwide. Pastoralist societies are particularly vulnerable to the loss of land productivity due to their dependence on pastures to raise livestock. Decreasing this dependence through the diversification of livelihood strategies could potentially reduce the vulnerabilities of such societies, with the added benefit of reducing livestock pressure on pastures. This study examines on-pasture income diversification strategies among Kyrgyz pastoralist societies and aims to identify which factors lead to tourism engagement as a non-livestock pasture-related income source. Both individual household and regional (rayon) features associated with diversification are investigated, as are factors such as the perceived high levels of pasture productivity loss. The results show that the income diversification among households differs depending on the number of head of livestock a household owns, regional differences and whether a household manages livestock belonging to others. In addition, the study found no statistically significant result that would show that high perception of pasture degradation would lead to adoption of non-livestock livelihoods, i.e. tourism.

Plant use values and phytosociological indicators: Implications for conservation in the Kailash Sacred Landscape, Nepal

Human communities that inhabit rural, remote, rugged and biodiverse environments adopt diverse livelihood strategies such as utilizing different ethno-ecological environments. The present study explores how people use plant resources in the context of availability and accessibility of plants and habitats, and diversity of culture. We hypothesize that people are most likely to forage the most visible and accessible plants and habitats frequently. This relationship was tested in the Darchula and Baitadi districts of the Kailash Sacred Landscape Nepal, using data from phytosociological studies and community interviews. Total use values, medicinal use values and other use values of plants were used for analyses. Plant availability was assessed by using phytosociological indicators. The accessibility was tested by using the use values of plants with reference to the site-specific explanatory variables: forest/non-forest habitat, nearby/transition/distant area, hill/mountainous district, and Himalayan endemic/Pan-Himalayan/cosmopolitan distribution. A weak association between plant use values and plant availability and site accessibility was recorded. However, the plant use value was influenced by ecological (Shannon diversity, species richness) and cultural indicators (preference for specific products and recognition) and varied at the level of use category (medicinal and non-medicinal). Higher medicinal use values at Darchula district indicate that the knowledge of plant collection and use was more dependent on quality of products and directed harvesting and less influenced by availability of resources and accessibility of sites. Since plant apparency was not found to always be the most important indicator, social and cultural factors appear to be as the most influential indicators.

Rural Livelihood Diversification: A Solution for Poverty in the Post‐Soviet Rural Baltic States?

AbstractThis article analyses rural livelihood diversification through a longitudinal follow‐up survey, that targets former collective farm workers in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. It argues, that between 1995 and 2010 the former collective farm workers employed three distinct livelihood diversification strategies in order to create their living. A wage‐based livelihood diversification strategy, which does not include any agricultural practices, was more common among the better‐off households. A farm‐based livelihood diversification strategy, which does not rely on salaries, was more often employed by the poor. A mixed strategy, that combines both wage income and farm activities, was used by both better‐off (above the poverty line) and poor households (below the poverty line). The paper also finds that livelihood diversification and poverty among the researched households have country specific patterns, which coincide with the general rural development in Baltic states.

Land use/cover spatiotemporal dynamics, driving forces and implications at the Beshillo catchment of the Blue Nile Basin, North Eastern Highlands of Ethiopia

BackgroundLand use/cover (LULC) change is a dynamic and complex process that can be caused by many interacting processes ranging from various natural factors to socioeconomic dynamics . It exerts a strong influence on the structure, functions and dynamics of most landscapes. Monitoring and mapping of LULC dynamics are crucial as changes observed reflect the status of the environment and provide input parameters for optimum natural resources management and utilization. The objective of this study was to quantify the spatio-temporal LULC dynamics using satellite image coupled with local perceptions in the Gedalas watershed of the Blue Nile Basin, North Eastern Ethiopia. Maximum likelihood supervised image classification technique were employed to classify LULC categories. After ensuring acceptable accuracy value for each classified image, image differencing approach was used to detect and quantify LULC transitions of the area. Classification results were validated with the aid of field work, topographic maps, and high resolution Google earth images supplemented with other available thematic data sets.The resultsThe result demonstrated seven major LULC classes and the overall scenario presented by the study reveals that the watershed has experienced quite visible LULC transitions that seem to be continued in the future due to eternal anthropogenic activities and natural factors. The study ascertain that though there was change in all land use types, the major change detected was a consistent expansion of farmland/settlements area mainly at the expense of Afro/sub Afro alpine vegetation areas. On the contrary, Afro/sub Afro alpine vegetation showed a consistent net loss of over the study of periods. The findings also highlighted that transitions were ultimately driven by the interplay of biophysical, socioeconomic and institutional factors. Perceptions of the local communities on the LULC change substantially agree with data from satellite images. This implies that the ongoing rural land administration and natural resource conservation and management strategies could not effectively address the expansion of agricultural land towards fragile and marginal lands in the study area.ConclusionThe study concludes that if these trends of crop lands expansion allowed continuing, sooner or later there will be no Afro/sub Afro alpine vegetation will remain. Therefore, local governments should strive to expand SLM activities on such mountain ecosystems and other marginal lands focusing on community livelihood diversification and sustainable intensification strategies.

Exploring determinants for the implementation of mixed TURF-aquaculture systems

Territorial use rights in fisheries (TURFs) have been highlighted as a means to deter the race for fish. Nevertheless, in many situations TURFs are not able to meet all their goals, jeopardizing their continuity. Here we explore one of several innovations on TURFs, mixed TURF-aquaculture systems, which can help overcome the challenges of maintaining sustainable socio-ecological systems. We analyzed the history of mixed TURF and small-scale aquaculture systems in Chile, particularly 8 recent learning platforms in the Coquimbo region. Additionally, we assessed the impact of 6 variables, from multiple spheres, on the implementation of mixed TURF-aquaculture systems. Despite low values in several variables, 75% of the learning platforms managed to implement aquaculture systems and 38% have been successful in developing monitoring efforts. Social capital was key in the implementation of the mixed systems. By investing in social capital policy makers can contribute to the successful implementation of mixed TURF-aquaculture systems, thus promoting a livelihood diversification strategy for fishing communities that encompasses the economic benefits of aquaculture with the socio-ecological benefits of TURFs. However, their development and enabling conditions must be monitored to embrace their synergies.

The Determinants of Livelihood Diversification Strategies in Qecha Bira Woreda, Kambata Tambaro Zone, Southern Ethiopia

Rural households engage in to livelihood diversification activities to ensure their food needs. The livelihood diversification is determined by different factors. This study investigated the determinants of these strategies in Qecha Birra woreda. Multistage sampling technique was employed to select 355 household heads of study area. The descriptive statistics result indicated that majority of the rural households (41.6%) engaged into on farm activity. However, the rest 22.54%, 21.41% and 14.37% combine on farm with off farm, non-farm and off farm plus non-farm livelihood activities respectively. This shows that agriculture is still dominant livelihood activity in the study area. Multinomial logistic regression model result demonstrated sex of the household heads, age, education status, training, and extension service, credit access, livestock ownership and market access are found to be significant determinants of the diversification. Therefore due attention should be given to strengthen livelihood diversification strategies so as to improve food security. Keywords : Livelihood, Diversification, Determinants, multinomial Logit model, Food security DOI : 10.7176/JESD/10-9-02 Publication date :May 31 st 2019

The role of social networks in building adaptive capacity and resilience to climate change: a case study from northern Ghana

ABSTRACTIncreasing attention is being paid to the role of social networks in climate change research and new studies show that they form an essential source of resilience. However, the role of social networks remains underexplored as there is only limited empirical evidence of their benefits, particularly for research on adaptation to climate change in developing countries. This paper provides a contribution to this field of research by examining how social networks foster livelihood diversification and resilience in a small rural community in northern Ghana. The study combines semi-structured interviews, focus group discussions and a survey with a range of other participatory methods. The findings show that, people in the studied community have experienced a range of climatic changes with negative impacts on agriculture in the last three decades. These climatic changes have forced community members to diversify their livelihood activities away from crop production and into off-farm and non-farm activities. Our results highlight how the process of diversification is dependent on household participation in various group activities and formal and informal social networks. Further, the households participating in several group activities and social networks had more diverse livelihood strategies and were found to be more resilient to perceived climate changes because they had access to the critical resources (material and non-material) essential for diversification through their networks. Importantly, this study shows how group activities and social networks can also create adverse effects by enforcing exclusion and marginalization among certain groups in the community. In addition, it shows how some diversification strategies are in conflict with others and thus may potentially undermine future adaptive capacity and the resilience of the community as a whole.

Impact of Micro Hydropower Projects on Household Income, Expenditure and Diversification of Livelihood Strategies in Azad Jammu and Kashmir

The study examines the impact of Micro Hydropower (MHP) projects on households’ income, consumption and diversification of livelihood strategies in District Hattian Bala, Azad Jammu and Kashmir. A multinomial logistic model is used to investigate the possible role of MHP and other control variables on households’ adoption of livelihood strategies. The Results show that MHP-micro hydropower has a positive significant effect on household’s adoption of non-farm and diversified livelihood strategies. These findings suggest that MHP projects in Northern areas of Pakistan could help in improving household’s income and consumption through adoption of high income livelihood strategies. Keywords: Micro Hydropower (MHP), Livelihood Strategies, Income and Expenditures, Poverty Alleviation, Multinomial Logistic Model

English

The review was made on determinants and challenges of livelihood diversification in Ethiopia. Different published and unpublished documents were collected through different search engines from different databases, Google scholar and Google. After thorough reading, 42 papers were used to review out of 182 papers. There are a lot of pushes and pull factors that affect rural livelihood diversification. Some determinants, which affect rural community were human, financial, social, natural, and physical capitals/assets. Lack of capital, poor infrastructures, lack of access to credit service, lack of access to market and marketing service and farmland scarcity were some of challenges that face rural household to diversify their livelihood. The major limitations of the studies were lack of consistence on terminology of livelihood diversification strategies, generalization during identification of factors affecting livelihood diversification and unable to reason out econometric model results. Therefore, further investigations should be conducted and development practitioners should pay attention to those factors affecting livelihood diversification. Key words: Determinants, diversification, livelihood, rural, strategies.

Heterogeneous impact of livelihood diversification on household welfare: Cross-country evidence from Sub-Saharan Africa

Abstract This article investigates the empirical linkages between crop and livelihood diversification strategies, extreme weather events, and household welfare using a unique dataset that integrates harmonized, national representative household surveys and geo-referenced climatic information collected in Malawi, Niger and Zambia. In doing so, the paper addresses the potential endogeneity arising from the selection bias and the heterogeneity of the effect across the quantiles of the income distribution. Results show that exposure to extreme rainfall events is positively associated with either crop or livelihood diversification in all the countries analyzed, suggesting that climate-related shocks are key push factors for diversification. Moreover, results show that the effect of diversification on household income are varied across countries and diversification strategies. However, most of this heterogeneity disappears when estimating the quantile treatment effects. In particular, the results show that the impact of both crop and income diversification on households’ welfare is generally higher for the poorest (people located at the bottom tail of the distribution) while it decreases, and in some cases turns to be negative, moving toward the upper end of the income distribution in all three countries. The findings, therefore, highlight the pro-poor impact of diversification strategies in multiple rural African contexts, as well as the need to tailor diversification interventions toward specific socio-economic segments of the rural population.

Livelihood strategies, capital assets, and food security in rural Southwest Ethiopia

Households combine capital assets in a process involving human agency and resourcefulness to construct livelihood strategies and generate well-being outcomes. Here, we (1) characterized types of livelihood strategies; (2) determined how different capital assets are associated with different livelihood strategies; and (3) determined how livelihood strategies differed in food security outcomes. We conducted a survey in southwestern Ethiopia and used principal component and cluster analyses. Five types of livelihood strategies, which differed mainly in food and cash crops comprising the strategy, were identified. These were, in order of decreasing food security: ‘three food crops, coffee and khat’, n = 68; ‘three food crops and khat’, n = 59; ‘two food crops, coffee and khat’, n = 78; ‘two food crops and khat’, n = 88; and ‘one food crop, coffee and khat’, n = 44. The livelihood strategy ‘three food crops, coffee and khat’ was associated with a wide range of capital assets, particularly having larger aggregate farm field size and learning from other farmers. A generalized linear model showed that livelihood strategies were significantly associated with food security outcomes. Particularly, a high number of food crops in a strategy was linked with relatively high food security. In this context, diversified livelihood strategies primarily through having a mix of food crops for subsistence, in combination with cash crops for income, are important for food security. This suggests a need to rethink dominant policy narratives, which have a narrow focus on increasing productivity and commercialization as the primary pathway to food security.