Household Food Security in Ethiopia: A Comprehensive Analysis on Drivers, Policies and Governance
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Date
2023-09
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
Household food insecurity continued to be a development and policy agenda in Ethiopia. This study is initiated to assess the status and determinants of household dietary diversity and food security, and to evaluate policies, strategies and programs in terms of addressing the multi-dimensional features of food security in Ethiopia. It also evaluated the food security governance mechanism of the nation. It used data from the 4th wave of the Ethiopian socioeconomic survey. The survey included information from 3,115 rural households. In addition, qualitative data was generated from key informants and document reviews. The study dominantly adopted explanatory research design. Data were analyzed using a combination of qualitative and quantitative data analysis tools. Qualitative data analysis tools such as content analysis, narrations and direct quotation of informant’s views were used. Quantitative data analysis tools such as mean, percentages, standard deviation, beta and ordinal logistic regression models were used. A composite household food security index was constructed using Principal Component Analysis (PCA). Using a multidimensional food security indicator, about 78% of rural households in Ethiopia are food insecure, with 90 % of them classified as moderately food insecure. Regional variations in magnitude of food insecurity are observed. Harari regional state and Diredawa city administration are relatively better than the other eight regions in the country. The study further revealed that the magnitude of food insecurity in Ethiopia is substantially higher than previous estimates done based on a uni-dimensional food security indicator. Dietary diversity of households is low. Cereals are the most dominant food groups consumed by 96.4% of the households followed by pulses consumed by 82% of the households. Nutrition-dense food commodities such as lean meat, vegetables and fruits were the least consumed food groups in Ethiopia. The study further identified the determinants of dietary diversity and household food security in Ethiopia. Demographic variables such as household head’s sex and marital status; socioeconomic variables such as wealth status and education level of the household head; and location variable, i.e the regional state where the household lives significantly determined household’s food security in Ethiopia. With respect to the determinants of consumption of diverse food stuff, female-headed households had 38% more chance of consuming diverse foods compared to male-headed ones. Household heads who completed secondary education and above had 62% more chance of consuming diverse foods compared to uneducated household heads. Household heads who were single had 37% less chance of consuming diverse foods compared to those household heads who were married. Those households located in Harari regional state and in the rural surroundings of Diredawa city administration had 6.56 times more chance of consuming diverse foods compared to those living in Tigray and Amhara regional states. The results also highlighted that households who were in the upper wealth category had 9 times more chance of consuming diverse foods compared to those households who were in the lower wealth category. Evaluation results of food security related policies, strategies, and programs revealed that improving the availability and access dimensions of food security were the main focus, with limited consideration of interventions that improve the utilization and stability dimensions of food security. Evaluation of the food security governance system of the nation showed that there are gaps in instituting effective coordination and accountability systems; ensuring coherence among policies, legal frameworks and directives; building the capacity of implementers at lower level of the governance tier; and ensuring active participation of food security actors. The study recommends that government and development partners address the multidimensional challenges of food security in Ethiopia by implementing interventions that build household assets and enhance the literacy levels of household heads. In order to address household dietary diversity, tailored interventions that consider context-specific needs and similarities in food consumption patterns and differences in dietary diversity among regions need to be implemented. Encouraging farmers to diversify agricultural production and providing nutrition education to promote consumption of livestock products is also recommended. Policies, strategies, and programs should adopt a comprehensive approach to include interventions relevant to address the four dimensions of food security. More importantly, an independent government entity with the resources and authorities should be formed with the necessary accountability and enforcement mechanisms.
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Keywords
Dietary diversity, food security, Policy, Governance, Ordered logit, Beta Regression, Ethiopia.