Outcomes of migration on sustainable livelihoods: case study of Mali village of Nepal
Student name: Mr Sanjeev Poudel
Guide: Dr Smriti Das
Year of completion: 2014
Host Organisation: Women in Environment (WE), Nepal
Supervisor (Host Organisation): Dr Aditya Bastola
Abstract: The basic livelihood strategy which is the combination of agriculture and livestock in rural mountains
are in multiple stresses through changing climate situation. The people have now diversified their
livelihood to non-farm activities like waged based labor, civil service and particularly out-migration to
urban areas amongst others. There are studies done in the context of migration and environmental
change however the relationship between migration and livelihood capitals has been little explored.
Using the livelihood approach as an organizing framework to examine the effects of migration in the
livelihood capitals of Mali village this research collected the evidence through household survey along
with key informant and in-depth interviews. The ward six of Mali village is moderately vulnerable to
climatic related changes as compared to highly vulnerable district as positioned by NAPA report 2010.
The results reveal that due to migration effects like increase in fallow land, shifting from large
livestock to less labor intensive livestock, limited participation of women in community decisions
making process, gaps of semi-skilled youth manpower in the village, increase in wage based labor
rates, massive inflow of remittance funding further migration, increase in possession of mobile phones
and increase of interest rates to loans provided for foreign employment by one percent. Hence,
institutional reforms in property rights ownership, community forestry participation mechanism,
structural reforms in school and health sector along with ways to re-integrate the skills of returned
migrant and better use of remittance flow in the village in productive sector is recommended.
Keywords: Agriculture, Mali Village, Migraiton, Sustainable Livelihood, Remittance
