The Impact of Location on Crop Choice and Rural Livelihood: Evidences from Villages in Northern Ethiopia

This paper attempts to demonstrate how location of an agricultural economic activity in relation to urban centers determines households' decision to allot their agricultural land to the production of either staple crop or a high value but risky cash crop. Analyzing household data from villages in North Eastern Ethiopia, we find that proximity to urban centers, access to road, and education along with other factors determine the crop choice in favor of the production of high value crops. Crop choices further significantly predict levels of per capita income across villages where the farthest with no access to road are the poorest