Examining the Poverty-Land Degradation Nexus in Kitui County, Kenya through a Political Ecology Lens
Loading...
Date
2022
Authors
Mutiso, Mary N.
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Kenyatta University
Abstract
The twin problems of poverty and landdegradation have persistently plagued Kenya in general and Kitui county in particular. Colonial and post-independence governments devised state policies and interventions to address these problems without much success. The overall aim of this study was to examine the nexus between poverty and land degradation. The specific objectives of the study were first, to examine the role played by colonial economic policies in the development of poverty and land degradationin Kitui, second, to analyze the relationship between the assets owned by households and their poverty levels, third, to assess the effect of the land management practices adopted by households in Kitui on the Land management outcomes and fourth, to evaluate the relationship between the assets owned by households in Kitui and their choice of land management practices. The study employed political ecology and the the investment poverty frameworks respectivelyto analyse,first, the the role of colonial policies in the development of poverty and land degradation and, second, the link between poverty, land management practices, and land management outcomes. The study used a mixed-methods analytical study design. Cross sectional data was collected using aquestionnaire while historical data was collected from archival and secondary sources. Three hundred and eighty-three households were sampled using the population proportional to size sampling method. This study used assets that a household had as measures of poverty and farmers’ perceptions of environmental problems as measures of land management outcomesIt analysed the data as follows; First, a historical analysis of the dynamics of poverty and land degradation in Kitui was undertaken to examine the influence of colonial economic policies on the development of poverty and land degradation. Second, the assets influencing household consumption (poverty) were identified through a regression between household consumption and household assets. Third, the study identified the land management practices practices influencing land management outcomes using Chi-square statistics. Finally, a regression of the determinants of poverty with the determinants of land management practices practices yielded the determinants of land management practices practices. This study identified four determinants of poverty levels namely: education, the number of active household members, land size and access to extension services. It associated crop failure, soil erosion, and vegetation cover depletion with land management practices. Finally, three assets, namely education, the number of household members between twenty and sixty (out of how many) and advice from extension officers influenced land management practices households in Kitui adopted. Since the factors that influenced poverty also influencedland management outcomes, the study concluded that poverty and land degradation are outcomes of the same causes and processes and therefore not necessarily mutually reinforcing phenomena. It therefore refuted the Vicious Circle hypothesis. Policy interventions to eradicate poverty and land degradation should therefore be on education, labour and extension services.
Description
A Thesis Submitted in Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Award tf the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the School of Humanities and Social Sciences of Kenyatta University, February, 2022
Keywords
Examining, Poverty-Land Degradation Nexus, Kitui County, Kenya, Political Ecology Lens