Livelihood Vulnerability Research Articles

Cultivating inequality? Regional rubber dynamics and implications for voluntary sustainability programs in Lao PDR

The Southeast Asian rubber boom beginning in the early 2000′s shaped a myriad of socioeconomic and environmental consequences, including deforestation, ecosystem impacts, shifts in community livelihoods, and altered local access to land and resources. Although there has been significant research assessing rubber production in this region, there has been less focus on economic inequality and polarization outcomes in rubber producing areas. This analysis explores the extent to which rubber production growth was associated with changes in rural economic inequality and polarization from 2007/08 to 2012/13, using Lao PDR as a case study. We also investigate the implications of these changes for voluntary sustainability programs focused on rubber production. We achieve this through a synthesis of land-use change and economic data. First, we estimate rubber plantation extent based on Landsat time series data and supervised classification. We combine this with household expenditures data from the Laos Expenditure and Consumption Survey from 2007/08 to 2012/13, conducting Gini decomposition and Duclos Esteban Ray Index calculations to explore economic inequality and polarization in rubber and non-rubber producing areas. Our results indicate that rubber areas experience greater inequality and polarization compared to non-rubber areas. The Northern, Central, and Southern regions experience different economic inequality and polarization outcomes – inequality-enhancing effects appear to be greatest in the South, where large-scale concessions dominate rubber production. We assess the implications of our findings for voluntary rubber sustainability programs, arguing that these programs should address systemic drivers of inequality and polarization, including dispossession from land and forest resources, insufficient worker protections, livelihood vulnerability, and barriers for smallholders. Overall, our results underscore the importance of strong regulation, multi-stakeholder action, and environmental and social performance criteria in rubber production.

Livelihood vulnerability and socio-economic determinants of households to climate change-induced recurrent drought in Ethiopia

Livelihood vulnerability and socio-economic determinants of households to climate change-induced recurrent drought in Ethiopia

Livelihoods under pressure: insights from riverine community in Bangladesh

ABSTRACT Rivers in the Bengal Delta are highly dynamic and characterized by bank erosion and channel shifting. Recurring erosion displaces nearby communities and climate change related impacts multiply the vulnerability of the displaced people. This study aims to evaluate the livelihood vulnerability of riparian communities with their spatial distribution of Bangladesh. It also investigates the socio-demographic characteristics of the vulnerable community and assesses their resilience capacity. A mixed-method research design has been applied that includes surveys and group discussions. The 150-household survey was conducted purposively from five administrative units of the Shariatpur district along the Padma River. Two vulnerability index methods, considering three major factors – households’ exposure, sensitivity and adaptive capacity – are adopted to evaluate and compare the vulnerability of these five units. Seven components (comprising twenty-five sub-components) are adopted to index these three factors. Three of the five administrative units are identified as highly vulnerable with index values of 0.494, 0.478 and 0.438. Low adaptive capacity and resilience are attributed to financial insolvency, weak social capital, not owning land, poor access to education, and the absence of social safety-net programs. High sensitivity is determined by food insecurity, the number of vulnerable groups, a high dependency ratio, little access to safe drinking water, limited healthcare facilities, unhygienic sanitation, and so forth. High exposure is delineated by the degree of erosion vulnerability, displacement, and loss of property and livelihood. The indexing of livelihood vulnerability suggests that the approach and its possesses have replicability in locations with similar vulnerabilities and impacts.

Assessing the Livelihood Vulnerability of Nomads to Changing Climate in the Third Pole Region of Nepal

This study was performed in Nepal’s Langtang and Shey Phoksundo National Parks (NPs) to find out how vulnerable the nomads’ ways of making a living are to climate change. We interviewed 68 household heads between March and May 2022 to obtain information on 13 components and 46 indicators. The original data were backed up by an analysis of the published and unpublished literature that was available. A composite index was used to combine the data, and different vulnerabilities were compared. As nomads in both NPs rely mostly on natural resources for energy, water, and food, the findings revealed that land, energy, water, sanitation, and natural resources are the most important factors influencing nomads’ livelihood vulnerability in both NPs. Although herders in Shey Phoksundo NP suffered less loss as a result of climate change-related natural disasters, human–wildlife conflict was a major issue in both parks. Both the livelihood vulnerability index (LVI) and LVI–IPCC suggested that both national parks were moderately vulnerable to climate change indicators. The results are likely to serve as empirical evidence for future strategies, such as implementing policy measures aimed at reducing the sensitivity of habitat conditions, increasing societal resilience, introducing sustainable livelihood alternatives, and improving individual stability.

Rural out-migration and the livelihood vulnerability under the intensifying drought and salinity intrusion impacts in the Mekong Delta

Out-migration is of high concern for rural communities in many deltas around the world, that are under the pressure of drought and saltwater intrusion (DSI). In the coastal provinces in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta (VMD), DSI driven by climate change has forced farmers to migrate to large cities for new livelihoods. This paper assesses the migration mechanism in Soc Trang province in the VMD, evaluating the perspectives of 120 farmers and 10 local officials interviewed in four communities. A framework of livelihood vulnerability index (LVI) was used to evaluate the vulnerability of farmers related to the intensifying DSI. A Strengths−Weaknesses−Opportunities−Threats (SWOT) analysis has been followed to assess the rural labor out-migration linked to livelihood sustainability perspectives of farmers before a Threats−Opportunities−Weaknesses−Strengths (TOWS) matrix was used to explore labor management strategies. Our results indicate that farmers’ livelihoods are not sustainable due to the high negative impacts of DSI, resulting in low marginal profits from rice production, but low remittances by the migrants. The SWOT and TOWS analysis reveals that Weaknesses−Strengths is the most promising strategy for providing jobs and loan development programs for the out-migration issue. These imply concreted policies for sustainable agricultural management and adaptation strategies to address the rural out-migration under the impact of the DSI. Our findings not only assess the mechanism of rural out-migration in coastal areas of the most vulnerable delta, but also offer an empirical evidence-based strategy for the labor out-migration issue due to DSI driven by climate change.

Assessment of household-level adaptation strategy to flood in East Coast Malaysia

The increase of flood-related event has affected not only property damage but also casualties among the community that lives in a flood-prone area. Increasing risk of exposure to the flood-related event will consequently affect the livelihoods of a community. Therefore, the adaptive capacity of a community is vital for farmers to be resilient in any disaster or risk-related situation. Thus, this study will determine a household-level adaptation strategy to flood on the east coast of Malaysia by using the assessment of the Livelihood Vulnerability Index (LVI). 100 paddy farmers living in Kota Bharu Kelantan were chosen as the respondents and the analysis of this study focuses on the adaptive capacity of the respondents. Indicators such as sociodemographic profile, livelihood strategies, and social network is used to assess farmers’ vulnerability and their adaptation capacity. Overall finding of the study shows that the paddy farmers’ household is in less vulnerable to flood events (0.36813). The result shows that social network (0.5275) is the least indicator to have higher adaptive capacity compared to indicators like livelihood strategies (0.3883) and sociodemographic profile (0.3485). The element of adaptive capacity is crucial to increase household resilience as well as to sustain the need of a household and decrease their vulnerability to a natural disaster such as flood. Therefore, assistance from the government and non-government agencies is needed to assist and support this community to promote well-being and quality of life.

Geography: Do we advocate enough for the discipline and profession in terms of public policy?

Geography: Do we advocate enough for the discipline and profession in terms of public policy?

Livelihood vulnerability to the changing climate: the experiences of smallholder farming households in the Free State Province, South Africa

As a result of climatically regulated water sources, smallholder farming households in South Africa are severely impacted by climate change. Using the Livelihood Vulnerability Index, we assessed the vulnerability of smallholder farming households to climate change in Thaba Nchu, Mangaung District of the Free State Province of South Africa. Primary data from 301 smallholder farming households were collected and augmented with secondary data on temperature and rainfall from 2010 to 2020. The study found that farming households in Central Thaba Nchu are more vulnerable than those in North and South Thaba Nchu in terms of adaptive capacity: social network, livelihoods strategies, and socio-demographic structure. The Central Thaba Nchu were likewise more vulnerable to water resources than the Northern and Southern Thaba Nchu. However, Northern Thaba Nchu is more exposed and sensitive to health-related difficulties than Central and Southern Thaba Nchu. The study recommends that non-government and government institutions in the province should employ a pragmatic method to evaluate vulnerability using climate service information while prioritizing vulnerable households for adaptation support to improve adaptive capacity and resilience. The findings also imply that weather forecasters, in partnership with agricultural extension agents, must provide farmers with timely and adequate climate information reports to prepare them for climatic shocks. Moreover, it is important to deliver climate service information that is genuine, significant, and reliable.

Traditional and Modern Perspectives in Agricultural Extension Practice in Nigeria

Access to appropriate and timely agricultural extension services has remained an enduring input in the alleviation of rural poverty. A pluralistic approach to agricultural extension services by government, farmer-based organizations, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and active participants in the agricultural value chain will help facilitate the needed advisory services in order to achieve improvement in livelihoods and reduce vulnerability. The exponential growth rate resulting in a population explosion, fast-rising vagaries in technology use, heightened increase in livelihood vulnerabilities and the impact of climate change; have further mandated the need for a holistic and urgent review of the method of extension service delivery. The training and visit system, on-farm visits, village meetings, pilot projects, farmer's field schools, and model villages are among the long-standing public extension approaches. In view of the foregoing, there is now an urgent need to appraise both the existing traditional and emerging modern methods. This article, therefore, reviewed and compared the two methods to see the possibility of blending the two so as to attain an improvement in livelihoods and national development. Therefore, the study recommends a decentralization of the mode of operation of agricultural extension according to farmers' needs for development in order to ensure sustainability and attain national development.

Farm households’ vulnerability to climate change in Cambodia, Myanmar, and Vietnam: An advanced livelihood vulnerability indexing approach

Southeast Asia is considered one of the world’s climate hotspots as the countries in the Mekong region, in particular, will be the hardest hit by the impacts of climate change if the global temperature continues to rise. This study aims to evaluate the differences in climate change-induced vulnerability of farm households in Cambodia, Vietnam, and Myanmar. The total sample size was 999 farm respondents, of which 304 were from Myanmar, 350 from Vietnam, and 345 from Cambodia. The farm households’ vulnerability was measured using an advanced indicator or indexing method with balanced or equal weighting. A total of 36 indicators were selected based on an extensive literature review and expert judgment. Each major component was comprised of sub-components and indicators, which were standardized using a balanced weighted average approach. The findings reveal that Myanmar was high in all components of climate change vulnerability, whereas Vietnam was the second most vulnerable country, followed by Cambodia. Based on the findings, we suggest implementing policy measures that aim to reduce the sensitivity dimension of farm households, such as by improving early warning systems, increasing public funding investment in infrastructure development, and creating embankments to prevent saltwater incursion, while empowering the adaptive capacity of farm households. Furthermore, we also recommend establishing the necessary healthcare facilities, strengthening the public-private partnership, increasing outreach and healthcare services, and improving access to the formal credit system.

The Role of Amhara Credit and Saving Institution in Improving Rural Households Livelihood

In Ethiopia only 7% rural community have ever received loan from microfinance. Some researchers argue that microfinance is not a silver bullet or panacea of poverty alleviation. The main objective of this study is to investigate the role of Amhara Credit and Saving Institution in improving livelihood of rural households. Cross sectional design and mixed research approach were used. The target population of the study was rural household clients and samples were selected by systematic random sampling. Data were gathered from primary sources via structured questionnaire and by in-depth interview. Data were analyzed quantitatively and qualitatively. Percent from descriptive and related paired t-test and Pearson correlation from inferential were mainly used. Amhara Credit and Saving Institution is not effective in improving saving habit of rural client’s ad their saving amount is not enough to minimize livelihood vulnerability. The institution is not effective in helping rural clients to convert their loan for livelihood asset building and creation. The improvement of rural household’s livelihood assets after they became a client is limited mainly to human, social and financial assets. There is no significant improvement in natural and physical livelihood assets. Therefore, the institution must work with different offices agriculture office specially to bring improvement on natural and physical livelihood assets.

Vulnerability of local farmers’ livelihood to climate variability across different agro ecology zone in Suha watershed, Upper Blue Nile basin, Ethiopia

ABSTRACT Ethiopia is frequently mentioned as highly vulnerable to climate variability due to its climate-sensitive agricultural sector. As a result, this study aimed to examine farmers’ vulnerability across the various agroecological zones (AEZs) in the Suha watershed based on survey data from 384 respondents. A considerable difference in the two-measurement index, livelihood vulnerability index and IPCC vulnerability index, was seen across the selected agro-ecological zones. The lowland AEZ was more exposed, had a lower adaptive capacity, and was more vulnerable than the mid/high AEZ. This was confirmed by the LVI-IPCC analysis result, which was found as −0.07, 0.03 and 0.18 for midland, highland and lowland AEZs, respectively. The variation is associated with the difference in agro-ecological and socio-economic factors of the respondents. The results suggested that building well firmed adaptation strategies based on agro-ecological scenarios are vital to reduce the vulnerability of smallholder farmers. Further, understanding the physical and climatic diversity of each agro-ecological zone enables us to identify the appropriate requirements to adapt and minimize the vulnerability of smallholders’ livelihood. In the meantime, adaptation measure based on the above index can be applicable at local area since the appraisal takes farmers’ perception about climate variability into consideration.

The ebb and flow of capital in Indonesian coastal production systems

The global fisheries sector has undergone both rapid industrialization and considerable resource depletion. Unlike fisheries in the Northern Hemisphere, the Indonesian (and indeed Southeast Asian) sector is still largely dominated by small‐scale producers, who are partially embedded within a subsistence economy. Changes in the nature of production and livelihoods in the fisheries sector appear similar to those in land‐based agriculture but have received far less attention in the literature and demand further analysis given the distinct characteristics of the natural resource base. Using national datasets complemented by insights from a two‐month period of fieldwork in South Sulawesi, this paper presents the process of capital intensification underpinning national fisheries growth and how it is transforming small‐scale production systems. Despite increasing market integration, we found that smallholders have persisted across coastal production systems to an even stronger degree than land‐based agriculture. We suggest some reasons why this is so. However, we also observed evidence of internal class differentiation within coastal communities. Such differentiation, combined with resource degradation and depletion, exposes the poorest in the community to enhanced livelihood vulnerability.

The livelihood vulnerability and adaptive capacity of shrimp farmers to climate change: a case study in Tra Vinh province, Vietnam

This study calculated the vulnerability and current adaptive capacity of shrimp farmers to climate change in two districts (Duyen Hai –DH and Cau Ngang- CN) of Tra Vinh province, Vietnam. The IPCC framework of vulnerability assessment was employed to analyze three factors (exposure, sensitivity, and adaptive capacity). We proposed 45 indices to calculate those dimensions based on the livelihood capitals (human, physical, natural, social and financial capital). Three methods of assessing climate change vulnerability index were applied to compare the livelihood vulnerability index of shrimp farmers in the two districts (Climate Vulnerability Index – CVI, Livelihood Effect Index-LEI, and Livelihood Vulnerability index under Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change –LVI-IPCC). Total of 300 households were interviewed in 10 randomly selected villages distributed equally over two districts. The results indicated that three ways of measuring livelihood vulnerability index are consistent with each other. The analysis revealed that the inland district (CN) was more vulnerable to climate change than the coastal districts (DH) due to natural capital and social capital mainly.

Assessing the vulnerability to drought of the farm households in Ninh Thuan province, Vietnam

Drought is the cause of severe water shortages and losses to the livelihood of farmers in the central provinces of Vietnam. This study aims to assess the drought vulnerability of farm households in Ninh Thuan province using two vulnerability assessment indices, the livelihood vulnerability index, and the IPCC vulnerability index. Data for the analysis were gathered from a survey of 231 randomly selected households across three drought-prone regions of the province. The data collected included information on the household’s sociodemographic profile, livelihood strategies, social networks, financial capital, water security, health status, and drought conditions. The research reveals that the poor farmers from ethnic minority groups with limited access to water sources, financial capital, and social networks are the most vulnerable farm households, requiring more support from the local community, and government to adopt an integrated drought risk management approach.

Capacity Building in Response of Tidal Floods in Belawan II, North Sumatra

Belawan II is located in Medan Belawan District – North Sumatra, which often experiences tidal floods. The low ground level, the use of pump wells as a source of clean water, the behavior of throwing garbage into the river and poor drainage conditions make tidal flooding uncontrollable, including in. The potential increase in the threat of tidal flooding in Belawan II has an impact on increasing the vulnerability of people's lives and livelihoods. But on the other hand, local leaders and communities accept tidal flooding as a natural phenomenon in coastal areas, so they do not consider this threat a disaster. Belawan II has never planned a disaster risk study to seek mitigation that is oriented towards increasing awareness and ability to deal with, reduce, and overcome the impact of tidal flooding. Reducing the risk of tidal flood threat problems in Belawan II is carried out with a community-based approach. The development of the resilient city program in Belawan II is a solution by facilitating increased knowledge, awareness, and ability of local communities. The activities include assessing, analyzing, handling, monitoring, evaluating, and reducing disaster risks in the Belawan II area.

Farmers' livelihood vulnerability to climate-related risks in the North Wello Zone, northern Ethiopia

Farmers' livelihood vulnerability to climate-related risks in the North Wello Zone, northern Ethiopia

Assessing livelihood vulnerability to climate variability in the Himalayan region: a district-level analysis of Jammu Province, India

Assessing livelihood vulnerability to climate variability in the Himalayan region: a district-level analysis of Jammu Province, India

Boko Haram insurgency and livelihood vulnerability of rural households in Northern Adamawa State, Nigeria

This study examines the vulnerability of rural households in eight selected insurgency-affected communities using the household vulnerability index with particular consideration to six main components of socio-demographics, healthcare, food security, water resources, conflicts and marketing, and access to finance as effect factors caused by Boko Haram Insurgency. Primary data used for the analysis were generated using an interview schedule among 280 household respondents in eight communities, selected using a purposive random sampling technique in July-September 2019. Livelihood Vulnerability Index (LVI) was used to analyse the data. The result showed that Gulak, Shuwa, Vih, and Lughu were the most vulnerable communities. The major components that contributed substantially to the overall LVIs were the conflict index, market, and financial index. The results have implications for adaptive and household resilient projects by the government and other humanitarian organizations for specific target interventions in the area. The insurgency has adversely affected rural households in Adamawa State, North East Nigeria. Therefore, enhancing infrastructure facilities, provision of basic amenities, access to market and finance, and improving the security architecture of the region will go a long way in addressing the plight and vulnerability of the people.

Evolution of livelihood vulnerability in rice terrace systems: Evidence from households in the Ziquejie terrace system in China

IntroductionGlobally, terraces, and rice terrace systems face problems that affect their sustainability, such as terrace degradation, abandonment, de-agriculturalization, labor migration, etc. The implementation of development projects such as reforestation, poverty alleviation, and tourism development have changed traditional smallholder livelihood patterns. It is not clear whether farmers' livelihoods have become more resilient or vulnerable as a result.MethodsUsing survey data on households' livelihoods in a rice terrace system in Southern China, we evaluated the livelihood impacts of multiple changes.ResultsThe results show that development projects are not entirely beneficial. The attributes and intensity of the disturbance of projects (e.g., tourism) on land functions, and differentiated farmer strategies jointly drive the hierarchical evolution of livelihood vulnerability. In detail, underdeveloped tourism increased rather than reduced livelihood vulnerability; the role of agriculture in livelihood directly exacerbated the variation in vulnerability levels; this resulted in the most vulnerable livelihood for households that are exogenously dependent or located in the core tourism area.DiscussionSubsequently, an evolutionary model of livelihood vulnerability is proposed in this study. Based on this, we judged that the livelihood vulnerability of rice terrace systems has entered a chaotic stage of adaptation. Reducing livelihood vulnerability will require the support of a tangible and circular pathway of benefits between farmers and the land. Policies should focus on the heterogeneity of farmers and the “negative effects” of development projects on livelihood. This household-level farmer livelihood vulnerability dynamics study goes beyond anti-poverty to provide science-based practical guidance to promote the sustainable development of rice terrace systems.