Date of Graduation

8-2023

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science in Agricultural Economics (MS)

Degree Level

Graduate

Department

Agricultural Economics and Agribusiness

Advisor/Mentor

Lawton Lanier Nalley

Committee Member

Tilman Brück

Second Committee Member

Brandon McFadden

Keywords

covid;development;economics;Kenya

Abstract

Like many Sub-Saharan African countries, the Kenyan economy heavily relies on agriculture. Agriculture in Kenya accounted for 50% of the total workforce in 2019 and 70% of the rural workforce. Though reliant on agriculture for employment and subsistence, Kenya has been historically impoverished and malnourished. Kenya has been experiencing an economic recession since 2018, which was exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Relatively speaking to other African countries, Kenya managed to escape the worst health effects of the pandemic, but the economic effects were substantial. This study analyzes survey responses from 1,059 Kenyan smallholder agricultural producers on the economic impacts they experienced during the summer of 2020. The findings of this study showed differences among groups on the level of impact, namely heads of households being more likely to experience a high impact on agricultural activities and women more likely to experience a food shortage. The results also find what factors make these economic effects more likely to happen to a producer should they experience these factors, such as reduced income. These findings lead to policy implications that can be used to prevent harsh economic impact in the case of a future pandemic.

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