What Makes Farmers Exit Farming: A Case Study of Sindh Province, Pakistan

Abstract

In agriculture based economies like Pakistan, farmers often shift from farming to off-farm activities as part of an apparent livelihood transition strategy, despite the fact that most of the workforce depends upon farming. In this paper, we try to uncover insights into how livelihood assets, such as human capital, natural capital, economic capital, and locational characteristics, affect a household’s exit decision from on-farm to off-farm activities as a livelihood transition strategy in rural Pakistan. We analyzed data from 335 farming households from the second largest agricultural producing province in the country, Sindh. Our findings show that more than 19% of households have completely shifted from farming to off-farm activities. Furthermore, we identified that the ‘crop input credit’ is one of the major constraints to farmers converting their previous input-driven small loans into larger loans, where large markups may be imposed if they fail to pay when the harvest is made. The empirical findings from Binary Logistic Regression provide strong evidence for family labor characteristics, particularly for working-age males, working-age females, and working-age children. Surprisingly, the cultivated land size significantly and positively influences farm exit rather than a continuation of farming. Off-farm employment, exogenous shocks, and urbanization also significantly and positively influenced the decision to transition into off-farm work. In contrast, the age of the household head, livestock ownership, and distance to a commercial zone significantly inhibited the decision to exit farming. However, government assistance, including subsidies, strongly encouraged farmers to continue farming. These findings provide new insights into the factors affecting the drivers of both exit and continuation in the farming sector as part of a long-term livelihood transition strategy.

Multifunctional farming as successful pathway for the next generation of Thai farmers

“…Individual factors–age, formal education, skills and abilities, gender, and race [ 12 , 22 , 23 , 26 , 28 , 30 ],…”

“…Our study is novel in two ways. Firstly, it focuses on both physical and psychological factors [e.g., 3 , 20 , 21 ], while most studies focus on one or the other [ 1 , 2 , 4 , 12 , 22 , 23 ]. Secondly, it is one of the few studies conducted in a developing country [ 3 , 6 , 21 , 22 ].…”

“…Firstly, it focuses on both physical and psychological factors [e.g., 3 , 20 , 21 ], while most studies focus on one or the other [ 1 , 2 , 4 , 12 , 22 , 23 ]. Secondly, it is one of the few studies conducted in a developing country [ 3 , 6 , 21 , 22 ]. While the problem of an ageing farming society is global, most studies on this subject so far were conducted in developed countries in Europe, the USA or Australia [ 1 , 4 , 12 , 23 ].…”

TR71 Bölgesinde İşletmelerin Koyun Yetiştiriciliği Faaliyetine Devam Etme Olasılığını Etkileyen Faktörlerin Analizi

“…Bu durum ise aile işgücünün daha yoğun kullanıldığı işletmelerde nakit masrafların düşürülmesi açısından diğer işletmelere göre fırsat olarak görülmektedir. Literatürde aile işgücünü kullanan işletmelerin tarıma devam etme olasılığını arttırdığını ortaya koyan çalışmalar da (Glauben et al 2004;Ahmad et al 2020). Ayrıca, işletmelerde hayvan barınak ve/veya çalışanların konaklama yerlerinde iyileştirme faaliyeti yapan işletmelerin koyunculuk faaliyetini devam ettirme olasılığı 14.01 kat artığı bulunmuştur.…”

Changing Pattern of Farm and Non-Farm Livelihood among the Bodos: A Study in Bodoland Territorial Areas of Assam, India

“…The depletion of land resources for farming caused by the pressure of the population induces farm exit and motivates people to change livelihood in favour of non-farm activities. The presence of more family labourers increases the likelihood of farm exit for a different career (Ahmad et al, 2020). It is found that large farms provide higher incomes to farmers and, therefore, increase farm survival (Kimhi and Bollman, 1999).…”