In recent years, microfinance institutions are seen as beacons of hope to help eradicate poverty through, among others, providing credit to poor rural households. Availability of small but repeated loans is, in the long-term, expected to impact on poverty. However, decades after the introduction...

Fatalism is considered pervasive, especially in many poor communities. In this paper, we explore whether fatalistic beliefs have implications for the attitudes and behavior of poor rural households toward investment in the future. To explore the idea of fatalism, we draw inspiration from...

Although Ethiopia's economy has grown rapidly over the past decade and urbanization is increasing, the country's economic and spatial transformation has only just begun. Ethiopia's share of agriculture in GDP in 2006 (48 percent) was the highest in the world, and more than double the average for...

In rural economies encumbered by significant market imperfections, farming decisions may partly be motivated by nutritional considerations, in addition to income and risk factors. These imperfections create the potential for farm assets to have direct dietary impacts on nutrition in addition to...

The migration of household members is potentially an attractive pathway out of poverty for many rural households in developing countries. Such households face the challenge of maintaining or improving their livelihoods in the presence of capital market imperfections, vulnerability to climate and...

We study food retail in Addis Ababa, one of the biggest cities in Africa. Based on a primary survey of food retail outlets selling cereals, fruits and vegetables, and processed foods, we note high variation in quality and prices in the city and an increasing differentiation in food retail...

Migration and remittances can be used by rural households as a means of insurance, investment, and income augmentation. Ample attention has been given to studying international remittance flows, since for many countries such transfers comprise a significant fraction of income. Remittance flows...

Decentralized delivery of public services has been promoted as a means to enhance citizen voice and make service provision more responsive to users. Ethiopia has undertaken two rounds of decentralization, making first the regional states and then the district governments responsible for...