"My research examines how rural people in Africa make a living and what this means for poverty reduction. I addressed three related questions. First, I examined labor conditions in rural Africa, using survey data from Kenya, Namibia, Tanzania, and Zambia. I assessed where rural wage jobs exist and whether they offer decent pay, stability, and protection. Second, I examined how nonfarm employment is linked to poverty and income inequality in Tanzania. Third, I analyzed Malawi’s Farm Input Subsidy Program and asked whether access to subsidized farm inputs is linked to lower household poverty.
The main takeaway from my research is that opportunities alone are not enough. Rural transformation can help reduce poverty, but the benefits are not shared automatically. In the first study, I found that rural wage employment remains limited and that job quality varies widely across sectors. In the second study, I found that nonfarm employment is linked to higher incomes and lower poverty, but income inequality can still rise when better opportunities are mainly accessed by those who are already better off. In the third study, I found that farm input subsidies can improve welfare, but gains are often uneven and depend on which households are able to make the best use of the support.
This research is relevant because many development policies aim to reduce poverty by creating jobs, expanding markets, or supporting farmers. My findings show that it is not only important to create opportunities but also to ensure that more people can access them fairly."
