ISSUES OF HOUSEHOLD FOOD SECURITY IN A DEVELOPING COUNTRY

Bhawani Mishra Kamol Ngamsomsuke

Thomas G. Johnson

2

National level

Regional level

Community level Market level

Individual level

Household level

Source: FAO

Food security studies can be done at the different levels

Food security study

3

Food Security at the Household Level

• As we move to the lower hierarchal levels, food security becomes more complex. (National level ---to---- Individual Level)

• Food security at the household level is an outcome of many factors – social, economical, environmental, political, institutional etc…

• Food security issues presented here are based on a case study done in Nepal.

4

Out of 44 Village Development Committees (VDCs)

Figure: Map of Nepal Showing Kailali District .

Figure: Selected VDCs in Kailali District.

Kailali is one of the food sufficient districts in Nepal.

Study Area

5

Data Collection

• Household Interviews , Group Discussions (primary data source)• Publications from Government Offices- (Secondary data source).• Analyses done based on caste/ethnic groups.

The household level is appropriate for studying the factors affecting food security (Gittelsohn, Mookherji, and Pelto 1998)

Reasons of studying food security at the household level

Little previous work done to operationalize the concept at the household level in Nepal (Gittelsohn et al., 1998).

Food production and consumption decisions are actually made at the household level.

6

Household

Expenditure(Food, non food)

Social variables(Caste, education)

Income(Farm, non farm)

Resource endowment(capital goods)

Policies,community resources, institutional supports, markets

Questionnaires Group discussions Secondary data

Tertiary factors Interlinkages Problems

Food security at the household level

Research Methods

7

• Majority of the households are in subsistence farming.

• Food security at the household level largely depends on agriculture

performance.

• Landholding size is a very important constraint to productivity.

• Landholdings are generally small .

• Landholding distribution skewed in favor of certain types of households.

Characteristics of Households

Major Issues of Food Security

8

Landholdings (National level)

Size of holdings % of total Holdings Area (000 ha.) % of Holdings

<1.0 ha.(2.47 Acre) 69.4 791.9 30.5

1.0 – 5.0 ha. 29.1 1470.6 55.6

5.0 – 10 ha. 1.2 209.3 8.1

>10 0.3 151.3 5.8

Total 100 2,597.4 100

Source: Central Bureau of Statistics, 2002

Major Issues of Food Security

9

Landholding size in study area

45.2

29.6

8.8

29.2

05

101520253035404550

Lan

dh

old

ing

(K

atth

a)

Brahmin Chhetri Sudra Tharu

Caste/ethnic group

30 kattha=1 hectare= 2.47 Acre

Major Issues of Food Security

Caste/ethnic group Landholding category (Kattha) Total

< 30 30-60 61-90 91-120 > 120

Brahmin 9 (47.4) 5 (26.3) 4 (21.1) 1 (5.2) - 19 (100)

Chhetri 11 (68.8) 4 (25.0) - - 1 (6.2) 16 (100)

Sudra 27 (100.0) - - - - 27 (100)

Tharu 23 (85.2) 1 (3.7) 2 (7.4) - 1 (3.7) 27 (100)

Total 70 (78.7) 10 (11.2) 6 (6.7) 1 (1.2) 2 (2.2) 89 (100)

30 Kattha= 1 ha.= 2.47 Acre

Distribution of landholdings among different castes

Major Issues of Food Security

Distribution of Animal equivalent unit

Caste/ethnic group

Animal Equivalent unit

Brahmin Mean 4.9

S.D. 3.2

Chhetri Mean 3.7

S.D. 2.3

Sudra Mean 1.4

S.D. 1.3

Tharu Mean 4.8

S.D. 3.8

Source: Survey

Major Issues of Food Security

Average family size by caste/ethnic group

7.3

6.15.7

7.2

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8N

umbe

r of

peo

ple

p

er f

amily

Brahmin Chhetri Sudra Tharu

Caste/ethnic group

Source: Survey, 2004

Major Issues of Food Security

6728

3348

915

3523

0

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

6000

7000

Sto

ck o

f ca

pit

al p

er

h

ouse

hol

d (

NR

s.)

Brahmin Chhetri Sudra Tharu

Caste/ethnic group

Average capital value per household

Source: Survey, 2004

Note: 1 US$=70.89 Nepalese Rupees (NRs.)

Major Issues of Food Security

Average Investment on agriculture

12270

8755

4266

8773

0

2000

4000

6000

8000

10000

12000

14000

Exp

endi

ture

on

ag

ricu

ltur

e (N

Rs.

)

Brahmin Chhetri Sudra Tharu

Caste/ethnic group

Note: 1 US$=70.89 Nepalese Rupees (NRs.)

Major Issues of Food Security

Household head’s years of education

Number of years’ education

Caste/ ethnic group Total

Brahmin Chhetri Sudra Tharu

Illiterate - 4 (25.0%) 10 (37.0%) 4 (14.8%) 18 (20.2%)

1-5 10 (52.6%) 7 (43.8%) 17 (63.0%) 21 (77.8%) 55 (61.8%)

6-9 2 (10.5%) 1 (6.2%) - 1 (3.7%) 4 (4.5%)

>=10 7 (36.8%) 4 (25.0%) - 1 (3.7%) 12 (13.5%)

Total 19 (100.0%) 16 (100.0%) 27 (100.0%) 27 (100.0%) 89 (100.0%)

Mean value of calorie per adult equivalent of 10 or less than 10 years’ of education is significant different with more than 10 years of education (α=0.05 )

Source: Survey

Major Issues of Food Security

n

jjjjj

tij

n

jjjjj

tijiTotkal

1

1

1

)1()1(

t total production of jth food commodity for ith householdj is the extraction rate of edible part of the jth food item

j is the waste rate of food in storage and handling of jth commodity

j is the rate of other losses than storage and food item jth item jth commodity

t-1 ij stock from previous years of ith household and jth commodity j is the calories values of the food item jth

Also include food bought and received

Calorie per adult equivalent per day = total calories of ith household in year / total adult equivalent * 365

Calorie per adult per day= f(land, caste, labor, livestock, expenditure on agri, land parcel)

Factor affecting of food security

Outcome of Household characteristics

caste/ ethnic group

Mean NStd.

Deviation Minimum Maximum

Brahmin2626.6 19 1848.1 1211 6925

Chhetri2251.4 16 653.6 1446 3923

Sudra1537.2 27 466.7 1086 2479

Tharu2204.3 27 1234.0 1052 6333

Total2100.5 89 1204.3 1052 6925

Note: The national average kcal per adult equivalent threshold level is 2250.

18

Factor affecting of food securityVariables Expected sign Result Significant

Cultivated land per capita + + *

Ratio female economically active adult to total economically active

+ - *

Adult equivalent + + ***

land parcel - + NS

Ratio of irrigated land to the total cultivated land

+ + NS

Livestock equivalent unit + + *

Expenditure on agriculture + + **

Dummy of Sudra - - **

Dummy of Tharu - - NS

Caste/ethnic groupNumber of

food secure HHs*

Percentage (%) to total HHs under each caste/ethnic group

Brahmin 7 36.8

Chhetri 7 43.8

Sudra 4 14.8

Tharu 9 33.3

Total 27 30.3

Food secure households under each caste/ethnic group

Source: Survey

High

Medium

Low

April/May May/ June June/ July July/Aug March/AprilFeb/ MarchJan/FebNov/DecOct/NovSept/OctAug/Sept Dec/Jan

No

income

income

Food shortage

Food shortage

Food shortage

Food shortage

Expenditure

Expenditure Expenditure

ExpenditureExpenditure

income

income

income

Seasonality of food security

Source: Group discussion

Food security trend

21

Additional issues related to food security

• Wide spread poverty among the certain group of people.

• Increased “Feminization of agriculture” due to conflict.

• Inadequate institutional support to boost agriculture (such as

improved agricultural technologies) .

• Higher morbidity during rainy season (including livestock).

• Inadequate access to agriculture markets (both input and output

markets)

• Natural resources such as forest, nature water bodies are important

source food (especially for Sudra and Tharu group).

• Land tenure Institution weak or absent (*).

22

Food insecurity(Core problem)Unfavorable

weather condition

Lowproduction

Less off-farmjobs

Diseases(Human)

Low inputsused

(fertilizer, pesticides)

Low landholding Low income

Inadequateirrigation

InadequateImproved seed

supply

Low knowledge ofpest and diseasesLocally not

supplied

Higher costLess contact withextension worker/

inadequate trainings

Higher landlevel

Higher cost ofPumpshet

No governmentsubsidies

Difficultprocedure

Low priceof output

Higher costof land

No storagefacility

Importation ofvegetable from

India

Collusion ofTraders

Price not knownearlier

Low governmentinvestment

Less governmentinitiative

Conflict

Inadequateknowledge and skill

aboutentrepreneurships

Low production ofRice and Wheat

Potato/ Tomatodestroyed

Notrainings

Higher familymembers/ family

separation

Higher demandof land

High migration of conflictdisplaced people

Conflict

Inadequateknowledge about

sanitation andnutrition

Inadequatesupply ofmedicine/doctors

Inadequate creditavailability

Rich picture of food security issues

Source: Group discussion

Summary of food security issues

23

24

Government Agri. Policy Trade Production

Regional food supply

Community food supply

Household

Cultural factorsRule for the selection, inter-household

sharing, intra-household allocation

Climate change

Household food

security

Intra-household

food allocation

Individual dietary intake

 

Morbidity

Individual nutritional

status

Figure: Conceptual framework for examining household food security, Gittelsohn et al. 1998

25

Income from different sources

Caste/ethnic group

Income from agricultural sector (%) Non-farm income (%)

Crop *(%) Livestock*(%) Total (%)

Brahmin 21.5(66.6)

10.5 (33.4)

31.5 (100.0)

68.5

Chhetri 18.0(61.5)

11.3(38.5)

29.3(100.0)

70.7

Sudra 4.4(56.8)

3.4(43.2)

7.8(100.0)

92.2

Tharu 17.8(81.1)

4.2(18.9)

22.0(100)

78.0

*Figure in the parenthesis indicates the percentage within Agriculture

26

1843 1795

2045

15581451 1446 1428

2983

2370

2629

0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

3000

Cal

orie

s pe

r

adul

t eq

uiva

lent

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14

Household head's year of education

Education VS Calories Per Adult Equivalent

Mean value of calorie per adult equivalent of 10 or less than 10 years’ of education is significant different with more than 10 years of education (α=0.05 )

27

Food secure households and their land ownership (*)

Calorie range Caste/ethnic Types of land ownership Don’t do agriculture TotalFull land

ownershipMixed landOwnership*

2250 - <2500

Brahmin 1 1

Chhetri 1 1

Sudra 3 1 4

Tharu 1 1

Sub total 5 1 1 7

2500-3000

Brahmin 1 1 2

Chhetri 1 3 4

Tharu 2 2

Sub total 2 6 8

>3000

Brahmin 3 1 4

Chhetri 2 2

Tharu 2 4 6

Sub total 7 5 12

Total 14 12 1 27

28

Activities Apr/May May/Jun Jun/July July/Aug Aug/Sep Sept/Oct Oct/Nov Nov/Dec Dec/Jan Jan/Feb Feb/Mar Mar/Apr

Events School admission of children, Cucurbits planting (early)

Diseases (human) Paddy nursery, Maize planting (upland) Cucurbits

Paddy planting, Maize planting (upland) Cucurbits,Calving animal

Diseases Diarrhea in children, Paddy Planting, Calving animal

Paddy weeding, Nursery of winter vegetable

Dashain celebra-tion, Winter Vegeta-bles’ nursery and transplantation

Tihar celebra-tion, winter vegetable harvesting (early), planting of winter crops

Paddy harvesting, wheat and planting, Vegeta- bles, Potato

Wheat planting Vegetables

Off-seasons (cucurbits) nursery

Off-seasons (cucurbits), Beans, Maghi celebration (Tharu)

Okra, French bean, Asparagus bean, Potato harvesting

Harvesting of off season vegetables,

Wheat harvesting

Expendi-tures

High Medium High High Medium High High High MediumHigh

(Tharu), medium

Medium Medium

Income High Medium Low Low Low Medium Medium High High High Medium MediumLabor shortage Medium Medium High High Medium No High High Medium High No Medium

Diseases (human) Medium Low High High High Low Low Low Medium High No No

Food shortage No Medium High High High Medium Medium No No No No/Low No/ low

/ diseases

No/low No/low FMD livestock

FMD livestock

Insect in Rice

Insect in Rice

No/low Late blight

Potato& tomato

Late blight

Potato& tomato

No/low Insect veg.

Wheat Rust

Insect veg.

Fowl diseases

Seasonality of food security

Source: Group Discussion

29

Factor affecting of food security

Calorie per adult per day= f(land, caste, labor, livestock, expenditure on agri., parcel)

Ojha(1999) has already tested these variables and found that log-linear model is appropriateI used same variables with Sudra and Tharu as dummy

Final model •Log (Calorie per adult per day )= dependent variables•Cultivated land per capita, •Ratio female economically active adult to total economically active, •Adult equivalent,•land parcel number, •Ratio of irrigated land to the total cultivated land,• Livestock equivalent unit, •expenditure on agriculture,

Major problems in agriculture

Problems Ranking

Conflict / insurgency First

Inadequate of irrigation facility Second

Higher input prices Third

Inadequate knowledge about pest and diseases

Fourth

Lower prices of outputs Fifth

Inadequate access to improved seeds/breeds

Sixth

Inadequate landholding Seventh

Source: Group discussion