Gender and Livelihood Diversification as Climate Change Adaptation: Determinants of Non-Farm Engagement and Multiple Income-Generating Activities among Small Landholders in South Punjab, Pakistan

Abstract

Small landholders in South Punjab, Pakistan, face rising temperatures, erratic monsoons and recurring floods and droughts, and many respond by spreading their livelihoods beyond a single crop or a single source of income. This study examines the gender-differentiated determinants of two diversification-based autonomous adaptation strategies: engagement in non-farm activities and participation in multiple income-generating activities. Primary survey data were collected from 1,152 small landholder households (974 male-headed and 178 female-headed) in the Multan, Bahawalpur and DG Khan divisions using proportionate sampling. Binomial logit models, with marginal effects, were estimated separately for male- and female-headed households in each division and for South Punjab as a whole. At the provincial level, 56.7% of male-headed and 47.2% of female-headed households engaged in non-farm work, while the share pursuing multiple income-generating activities was almost identical across genders (59.3% and 59.6%). Marital status, joint family structure, dependency burden, education, land size, land ownership, land quality, income, access to services, climate change exposure, food security and planned adaptation support were positively associated with both strategies in most specifications. Age and farming experience were negatively associated with diversification outside Multan Division. The non-land asset index was the clearest point of gender divergence: it raised the probability of both strategies among male-headed households but lowered the probability of non-farm engagement among female-headed households in every division, while still raising their participation in multiple income-generating activities. The marginal effects of access to services and education on non-farm engagement were also several times larger for women than for men. The findings suggest that female-headed households diversify mainly through farm-linked and home-based income sources, and that service access and education are the main levers for widening their options outside agriculture.