Rural households'decisions towards income diversification: Evidence from a township in northern China

Rural households'decisions towards income diversification: Evidence from a township in northern China

[SHS:ECO] Humanities and Social Sciences/Economy and finances

income-source diversification

agricultural households

off-farm employment

China

Economic reforms in rural China have brought opportunities to diversify both within-farm activities and off-farm activities. Participation in these activities plays an important role in increasing rural households' income. This paper analyzes the factors that drive rural households and individuals in their income-source diversification choices in a Northern China township. At the household level, we distinguish three types of diversification as opposed to grain production only: within farm (non-grain production) activities, local off-farm activities, and migration. We find that land availability stimulates on-farm diversification. Local off-farm activities are mostly driven by households' assets position and working resources, while migration decisions strongly depend on the household size and composition. At the individual level, we analyze the determinants of participation in three different types of jobs as compared to agricultural work: local off-farm employment, local self-employment and migration. We find a clear gender and age bias in access to off-farm activities that are mostly undertaken by male and by young people. The households' assets position as well as village networks are found to strongly affect participation in off-farm activities.

Démurger, Sylvie

Fournier, Martin

Weiyong, Yang

China Economic Review

ISSN:1043-951X

2010

ENG

article in peer-reviewed journal

http://halshs.archives-ouvertes.fr/halshs-00550457

http://halshs.archives-ouvertes.fr/docs/00/55/04/57/PDF/DFY_April10.pdf