This working paper analyses livelihood transformations and rural-city connections in sub-Saharan Africa to identify some key policy areas for rural development. The empirical analysis builds upon qualitative fieldwork conducted in Cameroon, Ghana and Tanzania in eight different research sites. One common feature of the research sites is that each is a dynamic rural region in which transformation processes are guiding everyday life of rural households. Building on a wide range of empirical examples from these dynamic rural regions, the paper further analyses the general processes shaping rural transformation and rural-urban connections (which refer to multifaceted flows of people, goods, labour and capital). It aims to answer the following research question: How do rural-city connections and livelihood diversification contribute to local development processes in sub-Saharan Africa?

Available from:
http://pubs.iied.org/10811IIED/?k=urban [1]