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Rural Income Generating Activities: Whatever Happened to the Institutional Vacuum? Evidence from Ghana, Guatemala, Nicaragua and Vietnam

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  • Zezza, Alberto
  • Carletto, Gero
  • Davis, Benjamin
  • Stamoulis, Kostas
  • Winters, Paul

Abstract

Summary This paper assesses the current rural development practice against the main trends in recent rural development thinking, based on evidence from four country case studies. While much progress has been made in understanding the need to look beyond only agriculture for the promotion of productive activities in rural areas, and the "institutional vacuum" consistently identified in the rural non-farm (RNF) literature is gradually being filled, much remains to be done. One aspect on which more research is particularly needed is the development of better mechanisms to promote productive investment rather than just social investment and to assess the appropriate level--community, regional, and national--at which to do this.

Suggested Citation

  • Zezza, Alberto & Carletto, Gero & Davis, Benjamin & Stamoulis, Kostas & Winters, Paul, 2009. "Rural Income Generating Activities: Whatever Happened to the Institutional Vacuum? Evidence from Ghana, Guatemala, Nicaragua and Vietnam," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 37(7), pages 1297-1306, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:wdevel:v:37:y:2009:i:7:p:1297-1306
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    Cited by:

    1. Ovwigho, Bishop O., 2014. "Factors Influencing Involvement in Nonfarm Income Generating Activities Among Local Farmers: The Case of Ughelli South Local Government Area of Delta State, Nigeria," Sustainable Agriculture Research, Canadian Center of Science and Education, vol. 3(1).
    2. Musa Hasen Ahmed & Kumilachew Alamerie Melesse, 2018. "Impact of off-farm activities on technical efficiency: evidence from maize producers of eastern Ethiopia," Agricultural and Food Economics, Springer;Italian Society of Agricultural Economics (SIDEA), vol. 6(1), pages 1-15, December.
    3. Ugo Pica-Ciamarra & Luca Tasciotti & Joachim Otte & Alberto Zezza, 2015. "Livestock in the Household Economy: Cross-Country Evidence from Microeconomic Data," Development Policy Review, Overseas Development Institute, vol. 33(1), pages 61-81, January.
    4. Munir Ahmad & Umar Farooq, 2010. "The State of Food Security in Pakistan: Future Challenges and Coping Strategies," The Pakistan Development Review, Pakistan Institute of Development Economics, vol. 49(4), pages 903-923.
    5. Nguyen, Trung Thanh & Nguyen, Loc Duc & Lippe, Rattiya Suddeephong & Grote, Ulrike, 2017. "Determinants of Farmers’ Land Use Decision-Making: Comparative Evidence From Thailand and Vietnam," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 89(C), pages 199-213.
    6. Fred Mawunyo Dzanku, 2018. "Rational But Poor? An Explanation for Rural Economic Livelihood Strategy," Journal of Agricultural Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 69(2), pages 365-381, June.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    rural development non-farm income agriculture institutions;

    JEL classification:

    • I38 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - Government Programs; Provision and Effects of Welfare Programs
    • O17 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Formal and Informal Sectors; Shadow Economy; Institutional Arrangements
    • O21 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Development Planning and Policy - - - Planning Models; Planning Policy
    • R50 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Regional Government Analysis - - - General

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