Characteristics and Determinants of Rural Entrepreneurship and its Contribution to Poverty Alleviation: The Case of Haramaya District, Oromia Regional State, Ethiopia
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Date
2024-06
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
Rural entrepreneurship is a growing trend that is getting an increasing attention from rural households, academia, and development actors as a key instrument to generate employment, raise income, and reduce poverty, food insecurity and migration of the working force. However, there are less studies divulging the characteristics and factors affecting rural entrepreneurship as well as its socioeconomic outcomes, especially in the least developed countries. Therefore, this research explores the pattern, dynamics, determinants, and multidimensional-poverty alleviation impact of rural entrepreneurship based on a cross-sectional survey data from Haramaya district, Ethiopia. The research was conducted through the analysis of both quantitative data. The quantitative data were obtained from a survey of 381 rural households, and qualitative data were gathered from a total of 13 entrepreneurs and 11 key stake holders through in-depth interviews (IDI), key informant interviews (KII), focus group discussions (FGD), and field observations. Generally, descriptive statistics (such as frequency, percentage, mean, Standard Deviation) and econometrics (i.e. Probit, Tobit, PSM and ANOVA) were used to analyze the quantitative data, whereas the qualitative data were analyzed using the hybrid thematic analysis method. The findings of the research show that around 25 % of rural household in Haramaya districts are rural entrepreneurs operating businesses in either or both farm and nonfarm sectors. The entrepreneurial works are dominantly characterized by business diversification, inter and intra-sector mobility, and valuecenteredness. Rural households’ entrepreneurial participation and the intensity of their engagement are highly influenced by necessity-factors that are associated to households’ socioeconomic needs and inaccessibility of basic economic items in remote rural settings. Specifically, household size, possession of farmland and residence house, distance from market, childhood experience of growing as orphan, and access to contract employment are found to be major determinants of both entrepreneurial participation and intensity simultaneously. As far as variables that separately affect participation or intensity of entrepreneurial works are concerned, age of the household head strongly sways participation whereas the intensity of entrepreneurial work is strongly influenced by the climatic condition of the residence area, number of siblings supported by the household head, the motive of starting the business and ownership of the business site. The finding also reveals the prevalence of profound multidimensional poverty in the district with headcount ratio of 85.5% and it also shows that rural entrepreneurship is serving as a xv | P a g e remedy for reduction of multidimensional poverty by significantly boosting the entrepreneurs’ capacity to acquire improved nutritional status and access to better life-standard facilities (i.e. transportation and communication facilities as well as decent housing. Yet, lack of strong support structure for rural entrepreneurship, narrow land access options, poor access to credit and long bureaucratic procedures have remained the bottle-necks for entrepreneurship development. Therefore, the government should multiply its efforts supporting entrepreneurial development in rural settings by expanding and creating awareness about land access and use options. The federal and regional offices of Road Authority, Electric Light and Power Authority and Water and Energy should focus on rural electrification pure drinking water, transport infrastructures development for addressing both entrepreneurial development and multidimensional poverty alleviation goals simultaneously. Higher educational institutions, including Harmaya university should extend their entrepreneurship training, advisory and incubation services wider and remote villages. NGOs, CSOs and farmers cooperatives should join hands and give due focus on the expansion of agricultural and non-farm business since both sectors are indifferently important for poverty reduction. Financial institutions should also work on creating the awareness about the available credit options and increase the accessibility social compatibility of their services.
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Rural entrepreneurship, Characteristics, Determinants, participation, intensity Poverty