We revisit the debate about the root causes of income divergence, and ask whether geographical variables or institutions are the main determinants of income. Complementing earlier cross-country work, we focus on the local level and seek to explain within-country income differences. Analysing...

Three hundred and sixteen households in 20 western Kenyan villages — 19% of all households in these villages — managed successfully to escape from poverty in the past 25 years. However, another 325 households (i.e. 19% of all households of these villages) fell into abiding poverty in the...

Combining qualitative-quantitative approaches, we examined the reasons behind household movements into and out of poverty across Kenya, and how they differ by livelihood zones. Among the 4773 households studied, 42 per cent were poor 15 years ago and 50 per cent are poor at the present time....