Rural underemployment and urbanization: Insights from a nine year household panel survey from Malawi

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dc.creatorVan Cappellen, Hanne
dc.creatorDe Weerdt, Joachim
dc.date2023-09-22
dc.date2023-09-28T21:00:53Z
dc.date2023-09-28T21:00:53Z
dc.date.accessioned2026-06-27T15:41:33Z
dc.descriptionRural labor markets in Africa are frequently characterized by underemployment, with farmers unable to fully deploy throughout the year one of their most important assets—their labor. Using a nine-year panel data set on 1,407 working-age adults from rural Malawi, we document changes in rural underemployment over this period and how they are associated with urbanization. Nearby urban growth results in increased hours worked in casual labor (ganyu) and in non-agricultural sectors, at the expense of work on the household farm. Improved urban access is also associated with a small increase in wage labor and, at the intensive mar gin, with hours supplied in household enterprises. We draw lessons from these results for policies, investments, and interventions to leverage urban growth for rural development.
dc.formatapplication/pdf
dc.identifierhttps://hdl.handle.net/10568/132055
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/123456789/111891
dc.languageen
dc.publisherInternational Food Policy Research Institute
dc.rightsOpen Access
dc.sourceVan Cappellen, Hanne; and De Weerdt, Joachim. 2023. Rural underemployment and urbanization: Insights from a nine year household panel survey from Malawi. MaSSP Working Paper 43. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). https://doi.org/10.2499/p15738coll2.136900.
dc.subjectrural population
dc.subjectunderemployment
dc.subjectfarmers
dc.subjectlabour
dc.subjecturbanization
dc.subjectincome
dc.subjecthouseholds
dc.subjectrural development
dc.titleRural underemployment and urbanization: Insights from a nine year household panel survey from Malawi
dc.typeWorking Paper

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Instituto Internacional de Investigación sobre Políticas Alimentarias (IFPRI)