Diversification and livelihood sustainability in a semi-arid environment: A case study from southern Ethiopia

Wassie Berhanu, David Colman and Bichaka Fayissa

Journal of Development Studies, 2007, vol. 43, issue 5, 871-889

Abstract: This paper examines the recently growing adoption of non-pastoral livelihood strategies among the Borana pastoralists in southern Ethiopia. A large portion of the current non-pastoral participation is in petty and natural resource-based activities. Pastoral and crop production functions are estimated using the Cobb-Douglas model to analyse the economic rationale behind the growing pastoralist shift to cultivation and other non-pastoral activities. The low marginal return to labour in traditional pastoralism suggests the existence of surplus labour that can gainfully be transferred to non-pastoral activities. An examination of the pastoralist activity choices reveals that the younger households with literacy and more exposure to the exchange system display a more diversified income portfolio preference. The findings underscore the importance of human capital investment and related support services for improving the pastoralist capacity to manage risk through welfare-enhancing diversified income portfolio adoption.

Date: 2007
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Working Paper: Diversification and Livelihood Sustainability in a Semi-Arid Environment: A Case Study from Southern Ethiopia (2008)
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DOI: 10.1080/00220380701384554

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