Participation in agricultural markets among the poor and marginalized: analysis of factors influencing participation and impacts on income and poverty in Kenya

Poverty in Africa has been found to be pre dominantly a rural phenomenon. About 75 percent of the world’s poor are believed to work and live in rural areas, and it is estimated that, by the year 2020, 60 percent of the poor will still be rural. Among th e worst hit in these rural communities are women and those in marginal agricultural production areas. Meeting the challenge of reducing poverty and improving rura l incomes in Africa, especially for these marginalized groups, will require some form of transformation out of the semi-subsistence production systems that currently characterize much of rural Africa to a more commercialized agriculture. Increased market pa rticipation by the poor has been found to be important as a means of breaking from the traditional semi-sub sistence farming. It has been argued that market-oriented production can achieve welfare gains through specialization and comparative advantage, economies of scale and regular inte raction and exchange of ideas. Unfortunately, the most vulnerable who need this kind of welfare boost may be constrained by several factors in their quest to participate in the market for their goods and services. This study aimed at assessing the extent of ma rket participation among smallholder farmers in Kenya with a view to identifying potenti al market opportunities a nd constraints for the vulnerable and marginalized groups. The study is within the broade r project by Tegemeo Institute of Egerton University, Makerere Un iversity and the World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF) looking at market participation among marginalized groups in Kenya and Uganda. In this study, we use a three-year panel da ta set collected in 2000, 2004 and 2007 and across various agro-ecological zones of Kenya under the Tegemeo Agri cultural Policy Research and Analysis (TAPRA) project. The study assessed the potential output market opportunities for different marginalized rural populations in Keny a and identified factor s that could enhance their participation in both output and input markets. The study was carried out mainly through desk top analysis of the existing data set with some complementary secondary data. Additional information was received through a few key informant and stakeholder consultations. The data analysis mainly focused on the characteristics of these marginalized groups and their participation in different inpu t and output markets.

---

• View source