Mango Farming Income and Rural Household Well-Being in Makueni, Kenya: Beyond Production to Livelihood Outcomes

Despite the economic importance of mango farming in Makueni Constituency, Kenya, the relationship between mango farming income and rural household livelihoods remains insufficiently established. This study examined the relationship between mango farming income and rural household livelihoods, focusing on educational expenditure, savings, investment, food security and access to healthcare. Guided by the Sustainable Livelihoods Framework and Production theory, the study adopted a convergent parallel mixed-methods design. From a target population of 28,696 small-scale mango-farming households, 379 respondents were selected, of whom 305 participated, yielding a response rate of 80.5%. Quantitative data were collected using structured questionnaires and analysed in SPSS Version 32 through descriptive statistics, chi-square tests, Spearman’s rank correlation and regression analysis. Qualitative data were collected through interviews and analysed thematically. The findings revealed a moderate positive association between mango income and perceived household income (ρ = 0.421, p < .01), and a weaker positive association with the overall livelihood index (ρ = 0.283, p < .01). These results indicate that higher mango earnings corresponded more closely with perceived income improvement than with overall livelihood outcomes. The findings support measures to increase returns from mango farming and strengthen mango income’s contribution to household well-being.