NIGK17009U Livelihoods and Rural-Urban Connections in the Global South

Knowledge:

Rural-urban transformation, urbanization, small town development, rural and urban livelihood strategies, the household as unit of analysis, livelihood diversification, multi-local householding, vulnerability context, global, national and local drivers of change.

Skills:

• Identify relevant theories and monitoring tools for analyses of rural-urban transformations in the Global South;

• Conceptualize and apply a livelihoods framework to assess and measure vulnerability and resilience;

• Critically reflect on the implications of using the household as unit of analysis.
• Assess the potential impact of global, national and local policies on rural and urban livelihoods.
• Sequence a variety of research methods for the assessment of rural and urban livelihoods, including both quantitative and qualitative tools.
• Use appropriate statistical techniques to measure urbanization, population change, asset holding and livelihood diversification.

Competences:

• Outline the theoretical underpinnings of livelihood frameworks and how these relate to debates within human geography and the broader social sciences;

• Describe empirical aspects of rural and urban livelihoods in the Global South, including the relative importance of agricultural and diversified livelihood portfolios, multi-locality, and urban informal economies and structures.

• Assess and measure vulnerability and resilience in rural and urban communities;

• Consider policy processes through which rural and urban livelihoods can be supported in a sustainable and equitable manner.