Household Livelihood Strategies and Implication for Poverty Reduction in Rural Areas of Central Nepal

Shanta Paudel Khatiwada, Wei Deng, Bikash Paudel, Janak Raj Khatiwada, Jifei Zhang and Yi Su
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Shanta Paudel Khatiwada: Institute of Mountain Hazard and Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu 610041, China
Wei Deng: Institute of Mountain Hazard and Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu 610041, China
Bikash Paudel: Local Initiatives for Biodiversity, Research and Development (LI-BIRD), Gairapatan-4, Pokhara Post Box No. 324, Nepal
Janak Raj Khatiwada: University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
Jifei Zhang: Institute of Mountain Hazard and Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu 610041, China
Yi Su: Institute of Mountain Hazard and Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu 610041, China

Sustainability, 2017, vol. 9, issue 4, 1-20

Abstract: Understanding household livelihood strategies is pivotal to minimize rural poverty in the least developed countries like Nepal. This study is an attempt to assess livelihood strategies pursued by rural households, investigate the most remunerative strategy, and identify the factors that influence a household’s choice of better strategies in rural Nepal. Primary data collected in 453 households from three villages of central Nepal are analyzed quantitatively within a sustainable livelihood framework. This study categorized households into five main livelihood strategy groups. The results showed that the majority (61%) of the households diversified their income to non-farm sources. Livelihood diversification to business/enterprise strategies adopted by 16% of the households is the most remunerative strategy followed by commercial farming that includes 13% of the sample and are more relevant to poverty reduction. Land holding, education, agriculture and skill training, access to credit, and proximity to the road and market center are the major influencing factors on the adoption of higher returning livelihood strategies. Stimulating poor households to follow market-oriented farm and non-farm activities by improving access to education, vocational training, rural credit, and rural infrastructures is momentous for reducing poverty in the rural areas of central Nepal.

Keywords: livelihood strategy; poverty; cluster analysis; multivariate analysis; elevation; central Nepal (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2017
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (38)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:9:y:2017:i:4:p:612-:d:95875

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