Fuelwood collection: does it matter for rural households’ labour force participation in the labour market

Abstract

The study explores the effect of time spent collecting fuelwood on rural labour force participation in the labour market. We use the Uganda National Household Survey data (2019/20) and employee the instrumental variable profit model to address the potential selection bias associated with fuelwood collection and the joint decision making for fuelwood collection and labour market participation. We observe that rural labour force participation rate in paid activities is 25.34%, and a minute increase in time spent gathering fuelwood for home use reduces the odds of rural labour force participation in the labour market by 0.8%. However, fuelwood collection for market in Northern, Eastern and Western Uganda significantly increases the odds of labour force participation in the labour market. In addition, household income, sickness from inhaling fumes, cooking technology and marital status significantly increases the odds of rural labour force participation in the labour market. We recommend upscaling agro-forestry practices and improved cookstoves to facilitate rural livelihood sustenance in the short run. For the long- and medium-term employment sustainability, the government should plan for alternative income options for rural dwellers to augment their productivity and enroll them to the global sustainable supply chains.