Understanding rural-urban linkages and their role in rural livelihood strategies in Egypt: the qualitative case study of Markaz Quesna

Abstract

There has been a growing recognition that rural and urban areas have become increasingly interconnected through a constant flow of people, goods, capital, ideas and information. According to this perspective, “rural” and “urban”, as separate concepts are not sufficient to cover the complex network of flows and exchanges that have made rural and urban areas dependent on each other. There are a considerable and increasing percentage of rural households who include urban components in their livelihoods and urban households who include rural components in their livelihoods. In addition to the dependence of urban dwellers on rural areas for natural resources and raw materials and rural dwellers on urban areas for services and markets accessibility (Tacoli, C. 2003; 1998a). Agriculture in Egypt has always been one of its main dependents for development providing livelihoods for around 55 percent of the population (FAO, 2018) and shares by around 12 percent of the GDP (ETF, 2021). However, there has been a noticeable decrease in the percentage of rural inhabitants working in agriculture, where 42 percent of their total income is derived from non-farm activities (IFAD, 2019), adding to that the continuous rapid urbanization of the rural areas and the high concentration of poor people around 35 percent who are living in rural areas (CAPMAS, 2021c). This indicates the need for new alternative ways to boost growth in the agriculture sector and provide more non-farm opportunities in the rural areas by considering rural and urban perspectives jointly. Nonetheless, in Egypt there is still a lack in the development approaches that target rural development by integrating the rural-urban linkages perspective. Therefore, this research aimed to explore and identify the types and nature of the rural-urban linkages and understand the role they play in the livelihood strategies of the rural households from a holistic perspective by conducting a qualitative case study that focus on Markaz Quesna in El-Menoufia governorate. The conceptual framework of this research integrates between two main concepts, namely; the livelihoods and rural-urban linkages. The findings of the research identified and captured the multi-dimensional aspects of the linkages and underpinning factors in the interrelated, socio-economic, infrastructural as well as institutional, rural-urban environments that influenced the livelihood strategies. Doing so, the research revealed the people’s perspectives on their own constraints and available opportunities in pursuing a livelihood strategy in relation to the existing rural-urban linkages in the study area. In addition, it was found that the development perspective approaches and the institutional mechanisms are the two main issues that could be considered as the root cause for hindering the enhancement of rural livelihoods development in the study area. Hence, the research has also provided main departure points and possible interventions for enhancing rural-urban linkages in the study area.