The Growth of ‘Rural Business’ and its Impact on Local Society in Zambia

Abstract

Securing a livelihood in rural Africa has become progressively more complex in the last several decades, as typified by the burgeoning rural non-agricultural sector. Rural society is difficult to understand without considering the non-agricultural sector. Non-agricultural activities include various types of income-earning activity. The rural business described in this study engaged in year-round, rather than, seasonal activities. Although the focus of this study is nearly identical to what has been called the “rural information sector” and ‘micro and small-scale enterprises’, previous studies have examined its impact from a macro-scale perspective, such as describing the size of the sector in terms of employment volume and enterprise development. Few studies have examined rural business dynamics or their impact on a certain community. The case study of commerce and trade in rural Zambia assessed the characteristics of rural businesses and their impact on local communities and livelihoods. During a field survey, I interviewed18 business owners in the study area of rural Zambia. The results indicatedthat business owners had relatively high-level educational backgrounds educational backgrounds and productive assets. They did not commit themselves to one activity, but increased their profits by engaging in multiple economic activities simultaneously, importantly, the relationship between rural and urban areas, especially neighboring towns, appeared to be essential for sustaining and expanding rural business. The examination of business impact showed that salaried employment provided by shop owners was rare and unlikely to increase. However, temporary labor contracts, piecework, easily met labour demands. Most community members had access to piecework, which served as an essential income-generating activity in the study area. Finally, this study demonstrates the importance of a flexible view of sectoral and geographic mobility in attempts to understand rural livelihood dynamics, relevant impacts on rural society, and development prospects.