care international in ethiopia – pastoral drop out study - ELMT Home

Livestock is the main asset and one of the pillars to pursue pastoral livelihood. People can’t
survive as pastoralist without livestock. Types of livelihood strategies (or activity or
combination of activities) pursued determine the ability of individuals or households to
achieve positive outcomes such as improved wellbeing and reduced vulnerability (Moser
1998; Scoones 1998). Pastoralists, to be able to achieve positive livelihood outcome, they are
expected to keep, breed and manage their livestock properly, i.e., watering, feeding, moving
them from place to place in search of better grazing environment, including migrating with
them to a distant area when the need arises. Pastoralist should have the skill and knowledge
to take good care of the natural resource base on which the livestock depend on in order to
reproduce and provide livelihood to people. However, peoples’ livelihoods do not always
result in positive outcomes and this is particularly so in the case of the poor who have
limited access to various assets and whose livelihood strategies may result in further
impoverishment and vulnerability (Rakodi 2002). This is the case for most pastoral dropouts
who are driven out of the pastoral livelihood system because of loss of their livestock and
engage in environmentally destructive, low income generating, and socially disgraceful
livelihood strategies to make a living. It is not always true to say it is the individuals’ efforts
only that determine livelihood outcomes. Institutional processes, such as market and political
processes, at local, regional and national can scales shape livelihood outcomes.
Migration and the sustainable livelihood framework
In the sustainable livelihood framework, migration is often considered as a key element in
livelihood strategies adopted by rural households for survival and accumulation motives.
People often migrate to improve personal and economic circumstances for themselves and
their families. While the reasons for migration are many and varied, a key factor for many is
to gain better livelihoods. Frank Ellis (Ellis, 2000) identifies different types of migration
strategies adopted by rural households in developing countries. The first is seasonal migration,
which refers to a condition where households decide to partly allocate their labor to off-farm
(or non-pastoral) activities for supplementary earnings during slack seasons in their major
occupations. In this case, the migrant household member(s) may leave the rural village in
time of low on-farm (or pastoral) labor demand and return, with some extra
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