MJAAR

Surviving the Statistics: Unraveling the Livelihood Strategies in Uganda's Informal Economy

Dr. Arinaitwe Julius, Asiimwe Isaac Kazaara


Abstract

This study examined the livelihood strategies employed by workers in Uganda's informal economy, where approximately 90% of the workforce operates with limited institutional support and high economic uncertainty. Despite the sector's overwhelming contribution to employment and household income, significant knowledge gaps remained regarding the specific mechanisms through which informal workers construct, adapt, and sustain their livelihoods. The research adopted a mixed-methods design, collecting quantitative data from 450 informal economy workers across Kampala, Mbale, and Mbarara districts through structured questionnaires, supplemented by 30 indepth interviews and 6 focus group discussions. Multistage sampling stratified respondents across trade, services, manufacturing, and transport subsectors to ensure representativeness. Data analysis employed univariate statistics to describe livelihood strategy prevalence, bivariate analyses (chi-square tests, t-tests, ANOVA) to examine associations between demographic factors and strategy adoption, and structural equation modeling to test complex pathways linking capital assets, livelihood strategies, and resilience outcomes. Results revealed that 81.6% of respondents practiced income diversification, 89.1% relied heavily on social networks, 64.2% participated in savings groups, and 52.0% engaged in asset accumulation strategies. Bivariate analyses demonstrated significant associations between gender, education, subsector, credit access, and strategy adoption (all p

Keywords

informal economy livelihood strategies income diversification
Metropolitan Journal of Academic and Applied Research

Cite This Article

Dr. Arinaitwe Julius & Asiimwe Isaac Kazaara (2026). Surviving the Statistics: Unraveling the Livelihood Strategies in Uganda's Informal Economy. Metropolitan Journal of Academic and Applied Research, 5(2). https://journals.miu.ac.ug/pages/article.php?article_id=175

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