Livelihoods and Food Security in the Small Urban Centers of Ethiopia: The Case of Durame, Wolenchiti, and Debre Sina Towns
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Date
2015-11
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
Food insecurity has generally been associated with rural communities, whereas the
number of people living in urban areas is deemed to be growing constantly and so is the
number of the urban poor. In addition, the recent sharp rise in food prices suggests that
poor urban households would be forced to experience an ever-widening food gaps.
However, there is little empirical evidence that quantifies the prevalence of urban food
insecurity and how people living in urban areas are coping with the sustained high food
prices. This study therefore aims to address this gap by investigating the food security
situation in the small urban areas of Ethiopia. This thesis investigates the current
livelihoods and food security as well as vulnerability situation of households living in
Durame, Debre Sina and Wolenchiti towns of Ethiopia. In doing so, the study employs a
mixed methods approach, whereby both qualitative and quantitative data are collected
from the subjects of the study. The qualitative data is gathered using focus group
discussions, case study and key-informant interviews while quantitative data is collected
using a structured questionnaire administered to three hundred households randomly
selected from the poor communities of the three small towns stated above. Food security
was defined using the Household Food Insecurity Access Scale criteria. It is found that
the poor have limited access to financial capital and characterized by low human capital.
They are also vulnerable to insufficient water supply and over-crowded housing
conditions. The study findings indicate that the lack of stable income, especially from
wage employment, has formed uncertainty about the survival of households. As a result,
poor people rely on a wide variety of strategies to eke out a bare existence and to cope
with their income and food insecurity. The price of foods was rising and simultaneously
the households’ purchasing power was eroded due to lower incomes and seasonal
fluctuations in employment situation. It is found that households in the lower income
group spent a great proportion of their income on food. The common coping strategies
used by households against high food price were shifting to lower quality food or less
expensive food types and reduction in the quantity of meals. The study found high
prevalence of food insecurity; 77 % of the households were food insecure, with 48 %
being moderately or severely food insecure. Factors associated with food security include
level of income, source of livelihood, household size, and educational status of household
heads. Households with higher food insecurity scores tend to have lower food
consumption patterns. The research highlights that residents in the poor areas of the
studied small towns generally eat monotonous food, with little concern for quality. The
analysis of the data on the contextual factors influencing people’s consumption patterns
by using a political ecology approach reveals that various interacting factors, including
the political-economic, socio-cultural and ecological factors that influence the decision
around which foodstuff households consume and around food consumption patterns
within the studied small towns. Overall, the urban poor as investigated in this study,
experience the high level of poverty and the subsequent high prevalence of food
insecurity; the situation worsening during summer (kiremt) season in the perception of
the respondent, causing frequent use of consumption based coping strategies. Effective
response to addressing vulnerability to food insecurity among urban households should
focus on adopting an urban food security strategy with a safety net program on stabilizing
the food market and on creating opportunities that could improve the livelihood and
purchasing power of urban households
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Keywords
Geography and Environmental Studies