Livelihoods research findings and agriculture-led growth

This article utilises the findings of livelihoods research in Uganda and Tanzania to comment critically on the emphasis that is being placed on agriculture-led growth as a driver of poverty reduction in sub-Saharan Africa. The interdependencies between rural and urban areas for improvements in living standards in rural areas are stressed, as is agricultural yield growth as effect rather than cause of mobility and non-farm income generation. The question is posed whether enough attention is being paid by donors and governments to removing urban growth constraints, given the palpable success of urban areas in producing lower poverty rates than rural areas. Finally, attempts to shift the balance of the current debate towards a more balanced view of rural-urban interactions does not of course invalidate efforts to improve agriculture; what it tries to do is to redness a currently reckless one-sided interpretation of the drivers of poverty reduction in sub-Sahara African economies.