Drought shocks and labour reallocation in rural Africa: evidence from Ethiopia

Arnold L Musungu, Zaneta Kubik and Matin Qaim

European Review of Agricultural Economics, 2024, vol. 51, issue 4, 1045-1068

Abstract: We study how rural households in Ethiopia adapt to droughts through labour reallocation. Using three waves of panel data and exploiting spatio-temporal variations in drought exposure, we find that households reduce on-farm work and increase off-farm self-employment in response to both short-term and persistent droughts, without abandoning family farming. Diversification into off-farm activities is driven by drought-related productivity declines in agriculture and contributes to consumption smoothing and food security. Households with better access to financial services are more likely to reallocate labour off-farm. Our results highlight the importance of strengthening the rural non-farm economy to enhance rural households’ climate resilience.

Keywords: climate change; labour markets; food security; Africa (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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