The Impact Of Off-farm Employment On Multidimensional Relative Poverty Of Farmers

Although China has completed the arduous task of eliminating absolute poverty by 2020,the problem of multidimensional relative poverty,which is mainly manifested by a lack of viability,still exists.The focus of China’s poverty alleviation work shifts from eliminating absolute poverty to alleviating multidimensional relative poverty with unbalanced and inadequate development,and the measurement of poverty expands from a single dimension of income to multiple dimensions other than income,such as nutrition and health,school education and living standards.The key to consolidating and expanding the results of poverty eradication is to address the employment and development of the population in areas that have been lifted out of poverty.The participation of farmers in off-farm employment is a necessary means to narrow the income gap between urban and rural areas,an important way to enhance their capacity for self-development,and a key to achieving "blood generation" out of poverty and preventing return to poverty.Therefore,based on the viability theory and the LannisFickingham labour transfer theory,this paper examines the impact of off-farm employment on the multidimensional relative poverty of farmers in the five provinces(including Ningxia,Inner Mongolia,Shaanxi,Shanxi and Henan)of the Yellow River Basin.Based on a review of relevant studies,this paper draws on the viability theory and the Lanis-Fickingham labour transfer theory to construct a theoretical framework for the impact of off-farm employment on the multidimensional relative poverty of farmers,and proposes research hypotheses.This paper further empirically analyzes the heterogeneous effects of offfarm employment on farmers with different levels of multidimensional relative poverty,and the heterogeneous effects of different off-farm employment modes on farmers’ multidimensional relative poverty.The main findings of this paper are as follows.First,he multidimensional relative poverty of farmers in the Yellow River Basin is at a low level,especially in terms of income capacity poverty,which has improved significantly,but there is still room for improvement in terms of living environment poverty and development capacity poverty.In Shaanxi,the multidimensional relative poverty of farmers and its sub-dimensions are both at a high level,while the other four sample provinces still have more room for improvement in terms of living environment and development capacity.Second,off-farm employment has a significant alleviating effect on the multidimensional relative poverty of farmers,as well as on income capacity poverty and living environment poverty,but the alleviating effect on the poverty of development capacity is smaller and insignificant.Third,the effect of off-farm employment on the alleviation of multidimensional relative poverty of farm households is heterogeneous.The multidimensional poverty reduction effect of off-farm employment gradually increases as the level of multidimensional relative poverty of farmers increases.Employed,self-employed and part-time employment can significantly alleviate multidimensional relative poverty of farmers,and the effect on the alleviation of income capacity poverty of farmers is the greatest.The multidimensional poverty reduction effect of part-time employment is the most obvious.Based on the above research findings,this paper proposes to adopt off-farm employment multidimensional poverty reduction strategies according to local conditions,to guide the orderly flow of capital,technology,policies and other resources to the middle and upper reaches of the Yellow River Basin,and to promote the full and effective employment of the poor through increasing off-farm employment opportunities,so as to enhance the overall and coordinated poverty management in the Yellow River Basin.Meanwhile,it is necessary to make up for the shortcomings in the multidimensional relative poverty of farmers,especially to strengthen the guarantee function of the rural minimum living security policy,improve the organization degree of farmers,enhance their social mobility and risk coping ability.In addition,the multidimensional poverty reduction effect of off-farm employment in accordance with the needs of farmers can be deepen,and we should strengthen off-farm employment assistance and social security for farmers with a higher degree of multi-dimensional relative poverty.