Introduction to the special issue on the role of nonfarm income in poverty reduction: evidence from Asia and East Africa

In this special issue, we present seven studies that collectively attempt to investigate the role of non-farm income in long-term and short-term poverty reduction in Asia and Africa. The first four studies out of the seven use long-term panel data over two decades in the Philippines, Thailand, Bangladesh, and India. These studies show drastic increases in non-farm income shares and corresponding declines in poverty levels over time, especially in the Philippines and Thailand. Education levels of household members and returns to education also increased significantly in these countries. The remaining three studies use cross-sectional and short-term panel data from Ethiopia, Kenya, and Uganda. These African studies show high proportions of poor households and low shares of non-farm income that are somewhat comparable to the situation in the 1980s described in the Asian studies. Without the Green Revolution that provided stable farm income and potential financial resources to invest in children' education in Asia, it is not clear if African farm households can follow the Asian examples. Copyright 2006 International Association of Agricultural Economists.