Rural Africa at the crossroads: livelihoods, practices and policies

The paper examines the shift away from agriculture in rural sub-Saharan Africa, driven by Structural Adjustment Programmes, and recommends policies to support occupational diversification and human capital development.

• Structural Adjustment Programmes have led to an unplanned increase in income diversification among rural populations in sub-Saharan Africa, making them more spatially mobile and occupationally flexible.
• Rural livelihoods are currently characterized by a balancing act between agricultural and non-agricultural activities, as well as between family and individual needs.
• While diversification provides opportunities and is particularly high among migrating youth and women selling home-making skills, it also threatens traditional family and agrarian values, introducing social dysfunctions typically associated with urban areas into villages.

APA

Climate and Development Knowledge Network (2011). Rural Africa at the crossroads: livelihoods, practices and policies. https://cdkn.org/resource/rural-africa-at-the-crossroads-livelihoods-practices-and-policies

Chicago

Climate and Development Knowledge Network. Rural Africa at the crossroads: livelihoods, practices and policies. 2011. https://cdkn.org/resource/rural-africa-at-the-crossroads-livelihoods-practices-and-policies.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Climate and Development Knowledge Network |title=Rural Africa at the crossroads: livelihoods, practices and policies |date=12 September 2011 |url=https://cdkn.org/resource/rural-africa-at-the-crossroads-livelihoods-practices-and-policies |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{climateanddevelopmentknowledgenetwork2011rural, author = {{Climate and Development Knowledge Network}}, title = {{Rural Africa at the crossroads: livelihoods, practices and policies}}, institution = {Climate and Development Knowledge Network}, year = {2011}, month = sep, url = {https://cdkn.org/resource/rural-africa-at-the-crossroads-livelihoods-practices-and-policies}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }