A MODEL OF HOUSEHOLD DECISIONS IN DRYLAND AGROPASTORAL SYSTEMS

A model of household decision-making in dryland agropastoral systems i s presented. This is used to find the optimal combination of crops and livestock that a farmer will choose to keep, depending on household w ealth, under the assumption that farmers act to minimize their long-te rm probability of destitution. The farmer can choose to plant a high-r isk crop such as maize, a low-risk crop such as millet, and to keep go ats or cattle. An interaction between these components is modelled inv olving the use of cattle for draft power. It is shown that very poor f armers will choose to plant maize, whereas cattle are kept only if the y are to be used for draft power, and only by the wealthier farmers. C opyright (C) 1996 Elsevier Science Ltd