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Intra-household Food Security Status Among Ultra-poor Communities in Mymensingh District

Masuma Bari
Department of Agricultural and Applied Statistics, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh-2202

Mohammad Amirul Islam
Corresponding author:
Department of Agricultural and Applied Statistics, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh-2202

Md. Farouq Imam
Department of Agricultural and Applied Statistics, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh-2202

Md. Fuad Hassan
Department of Agricultural and Applied Statistics, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh-2202

Abstract/ Executive Summary:

Recent global agenda including Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) highlight the importance of addressing food security, especially among the ultra-poor communities at the intra-household level. Ensuring food security would continue to be a major challenge among South-Asian countries like Bangladesh. Although Bangladesh has achieved sufficiency in food production but food security is remaining a challenge in rural areas and some clusters in urban areas. This study was conducted to explore the household food security among the ultra-poor communities at Phulpur and Tarakanda Upazilas of the Mymensingh district in Bangladesh. The sample size consisted of 150 households. The binary logistic regression model was used to determine the socioeconomic factors influencing food security. The wife’s (primary female) education was found to be positive, while the husband’s (household head) occupation was found to be negatively associated with the food security status of the selected households. Considering 1805 kcal, 56.7% of the sample households were food secure, and considering 2122 kcal, 42% were food secure. This study also revealed indicative disparities in food security within households. Policies should address these issues.

Keywords: Intra-household, Food security, Ultra poor

Location: Mymensingh district, Bangladesh

Start Date:

End Date:

Program Area: Food Safety and Security

Commodity: Food, Livelihood

Objectives:

To figure out the socio-economic factors influencing the food security of the ultra-poor at the intra-household level.

Methodology:

Data This study is based on both primary and secondary data. Secondary data has been used to identify the study area. Primary data were collected in a field survey by face-to-face interviews to examine the intra-household food security status of the ultrapoor communities (extre poverty-prone areas identified in HIES, 2010) in Mymensingh district. A multi-stage sampling technique was used for providing the primary data from Mymensingh district. Firstly, two sub-districts namely, Phulpur and Tarakanda were selected randomly within the poverty-prone sub-districts as indicated in the HIES 2010 in Mymensingh district. From each of the selected sub-districts, one village was selected randomly. Finally, within the selected village a circular systematic sample (approx.. 75) of households was selected. In this process a random start was taken between 1 to N and subsequent units were selected at equal intervals after arranging the units in a circular way. This overcomes the situation when N is not multiple of sample size n. The total sample size became 150 (78+72) households. Data were collected during 2 September to 17 September 2018. Measure of Food Security-Direct Calorie Intake Food security can be measured in many ways. We used the direct calorie intake (DCI) method for the comparability with other national studies. The direct calorie intake (DCI) method estimates the per capita calorie intake at the household level and individual level. In this method, the household level food consumed during the last three days in a household is first averaged and afterward, the average content of food per day per household was converted into kilo calorie (using conversion factors suggested by FAO). The amount of calorie intake was then converted into per capita per day. According to this method, the members of a household are considered food insecure if their average calorie intake falls below a certain level (HIES, 2010). In Bangladesh, ‘absolute food insecure’ is defined as an average intake of less than 2,122 kcal per capita per day, while, ‘extreme food insecure’ refers to an average below 1,805 kcal per capita per day (Imam et al., 2018; HIES, 2010). The approach assumes a value of 0.5 for household members less than 15 years (children) of age and one for those above 15 years (adult). For example, a household with four adult members will have an adult equivalent value of 4 while, a household with two children and two adult members will have an adult equivalent value of 3 {(2+ (0.5*2) = 3} (Akerele et al., 2018). Measure of Poverty-Cost of Basic Needs Poverty can be estimated by using several approaches. The study estimated poverty based on the Cost of Basic Needs (CBN) method. In the CBN method, the poverty line (PL) indicates the average level of per capita expenditure at which persons can meet basic food and non-food needs. However, the upper poverty line (UPL) can be computed as adding the food and upper non-food allowances, while the lower poverty line (LPL) constitutes adding the food and lower nonfood allowances (HIES, 2016). In Bangladesh, absolute poverty is defined as the households whose per capita expenditures are below the UPL, whilst hard-core or extreme poverty refers to the households whose per capita expenditures are below the LPL. From Mymensingh district BDT 1276 was considered for LPL while, BDT 1497 was considered for UPL (World Bank, 2013). Measure of Dietary Diversity Scores (DDS) Dietary diversity scores are the number of distinct food groups consumed by a household during the week prior to being surveyed by the HIES. Each food group represents a special class of nutrients, and a higher DDS indicates greater diversity of food intake and better quality diets. The DDS estimates a household’s economic ability to consume a set of nutritionally diverse food items. Customarily, food consumption is recorded over a period of 24 hours, and the food tally is used to calculate the household dietary diversity score (FAO, 2013). A higher DDS implies a more diversified portfolio of food intake and a higher-quality diet. Thus, this measure can be used as a relatively simple indicator for the micronutrient adequacy of households’ diets. Logistic Regression Model Several studies attempted to identify the determinants of food security at the household level mostly using logistic regression models (Mahajan and Joshi, 2011; Faridi and Wadood, 2010; Lawal et al., 2008; Haile et al., 2005; Abegaz, 2017). The use of the binary logistic regression model is popular to investigate the response of the food security questions. Logistic regression measures the relationship between a categorical dependent variable and one or more independent variables. When the dependent variable is dichotomous, in general, the logistic model expresses a qualitative dependent variable as a function of several independent variables, both qualitative and quantitative.

Source of Information: The Bangladesh Journal of Agricultural Economics, 41(2): 1-16, 2020

Article Link (Online Journal):

Funding Source:

1.

Budget:

Total Budget (Tk.) :

Achievement/Findings:

Food security has been an important policy issue over the few decades in Bangladesh. Interventions in the country so far is general in naure, except some safetynet programs. Recent surveys (HIES 2016; HIES 2010) reveal that there have been pockets of poor (and ultra poor) communities spreading in different corners of the country, which need special attention in terms of achieving goals related food security. This study examined the determinants of food security of the ultra-poor household in rural households in Bangladesh using binary logistic regression. The results indicate that our study population being residents in the rural areas are suffering from food insecurity and require immediate policy intervention. This study identified several factors that were associated with the household’s food security using the binary logistic regression model. When food security is measured using households per capita consumsion less than 1805 kcal, it appeared that husband age, child-adult ratio, and child male-female ratio have significant association with food security and, when food security is measured at less than 2122 kcal, it revealed that husband age, education, wife education have significant association with food security. Among the upazilas under Mymensingh division, Phulpur and Tarakanda upazilas have been identified as the poorest upazilas. These upazilas have underlying causes, which may be somewhat different than other upazilas, for such poor condition. Specific interventions should be taken to address the food security issue in the region. Policy formulation should be based on the determinants of food security, especially education, occupation, child adult ratio, child male female ratio. More specifically, there should be programs to increase education level (in terms of enrolment) and awareness on food consumption behaviour to increase DDS (in teems of nutrition campaign). Alternative employment opportunities should be introduced providing related skill training and easing the access to resources. Intra-household food insecurity sould be properly addressed within the nutrition programs and family planning programs by properly disseminating the dietary requirement of individuals (of either sex, and children , adults and elderly) within households. The interventions should bring changes in resource mobilization and food consumption behaviour. These factors have the potentials to bring a massive change in food security because food security goes beyond the access to food but its utilization (food consumption behavior) too. Currently, in the study areas a persistent level of lower educational status (also illiteracy) among the household members is evident and this seems not effective to bring any rapid change in poverty as well as food security situations. So, skilled-based higher education should be promoted to overcome the situation. There was distinctive difference in dietary diversity between poor and non-poor households. Furthermore, this study revealed intra-household disparity in food security to some extent. The government should run dedicated programs to ensure food security of the households of the rural areas by properly adderessing the intrahousehold disparities.

Knowledge Management: Journal