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Rural differentiation and rural change: Microlevel evidence from Kenya
Author(s) -
Fibæk Maria Mwaipopo
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
journal of agrarian change
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.63
H-Index - 56
eISSN - 1471-0366
pISSN - 1471-0358
DOI - 10.1111/joac.12439
Subject(s) - agrarian society , differentiation , economics , agriculture , rural development , economic growth , politics , development economics , economic geography , geography , political science , sociology , social science , archaeology , law
This study investigates how smallholder differentiation can be reconciled with processes of rural development. Conventional theories and policies are primarily based on assumptions of an undifferentiated smallholder sector. Conversely, some agrarian political economy scholars argue that smallholder differentiation may be correlated with dynamic rural development. To contribute to the debate, rural households in this study are stratified into income classes, and accumulation patterns among each income class are examined. The analysis shows that smallholder differentiation does not coincide with dynamic rural development. Instead of accumulating wealth through farming, richer households have diversified to better paid employment.