Many people in rural Africa still rely on smallholder agriculture as their main source of livelihood. Yet pursuing other economic activities beyond farming to diversify incomes becomes increasingly important. In this paper, we focus on the role of people's income aspirations in the process of...

We analyze the relationship between household electricity access and off-farm employment of women and men in rural Africa, using primary survey data from Kenya, Namibia, Tanzania, and Zambia. Estimating regression models, we find that access to electricity is positively associated with women's...

Do transgenic crops cause agrobiodiversity erosion? We hypothesize that they increase productivity and reduce production risk and may therefore reduce farmer demand for on-farm varietal diversity, especially when only a few transgenic varieties are available. We also hypothesize that varietal...

This paper identifies the effect of aspirations on the adoption of agricultural innovations in the context of rural Ethiopia. While most studies on agricultural innovations have focused on identifying observable and resource-related deprivations or 'external' constraints, a related stream of...

With numerous challenges hindering smallholders’ adoption of externally developed technologies, it is often argued that farmer innovation can play an essential role in rural livelihoods. Yet a rigorous assessment of the impact of farmer innovation is lacking. We address this issue by analyzing...

Bioenergy is a major source of energy in developing countries. However, increasing demand for agricultural commodities can lead to a stronger competition for natural resources with the bioenergy production. The nexus among energy, food production and natural resource use may result in trade-offs...

This paper examines the state, drivers and, consequently, the impacts of agricultural mechanization in eleven countries in Africa. Using representative multistage stratified household survey data and robust analytical approaches, findings show light hand-held tools and equipment remain the main...

This study seeks to assess the complementarity of education and use of use of agricultural inputs-improved seeds, fertilizers, access to credit facilities (loans)), and the incremental effects of education on intermediate to longer-term economic outcomes (consumption expenditure and poverty)...

After many years of neglect, there is a renewed interest in agricultural mechanization in Africa. Since government initiatives to promote mechanization, e.g., by importing and subsidizing tractors, are confronted with major governance challenges, private-sector initiatives offer a promising...

Digital tools may help to study socioeconomic aspects of agricultural development that are difficult to measure such as the effects of new technologies, policies and practices on the intra-household allocation of time. As new technologies, policies and practices may target different crops and...