Technical report

Transforming pastoral livelihoods through market interventions: does the impact match expectations? Lessons from a decade of investments in Somali Region, Ethiopia

This report looks at general lessons about the development model and theory of change, and its appropriateness for pastoral economies.

Publisher SPARC
By Claire Bedelian Simon Levine
Reframing aid and resilience Africa Ethiopia

Models that seek to drive transformation of rural economies by greater market orientation have been widely used, including, over many years, in pastoral economies. Even where evaluations have shown successful implementation, little has been studied about their contribution to change because studies have not sought to trace the impacts down to the intended ‘beneficiaries’, the small-scale rural producers. 

This is compounded by the problem of learning being restricted to project timeframes, whereas sustainable change can be seen only in much longer timeframes. As a result, we know too little about how best to support resilience in pastoral economies.

The report is based on an internal impact assessment of market-based development programmes implemented over the past decade and more in Somali Regional State in Ethiopia. It looks only at general lessons about the development model and theory of change, and its appropriateness for pastoral economies. Using the programmes as a case studies of resilience-building, it offers lessons of wide applicability on approaches that could make investments in resilience more effective.

Findings

 

A man walks down a path, leading his herd of goats
A herder in Somali Region, Ethiopia.
Credit © E. Millstein / Mercy Corps

Source URL: https://www.sparc-knowledge.org/publications-resources/transforming-pastoral-livelihoods