COLLEGE OF DEVELOPMENT STUDIES

CENTER FOR FOOD SECURITY STUDIES

DETERMINANTS OF HOUSEHOLD FOOD INSECURITY IN

JAMMA WOREDA OF SOUTH WOLLO ZONE, AMHARA REGION

BY

MEZGEBU AYELEWOLDE

APR, 2020
 ADDIS ABABA

COLLEGE OF DEVELOPMENT STUDIES

CENTER FOR FOOD SECURITY STUDIES

DETERMINANTS OF HOUSEHOLD FOOD INSECURITY IN

JAMMA WOREDA OF SOUTH WOLLO ZONE, AMHARA REGION
BY
MEZGEBU AYELEWOLDE
THESIS ADVISER
MESKEREM ABI (PhD)

MSC THESIS PROPOSAL SUBMITTED TO CENTER FOR FOOD

SECURITY STUDIES, COLLEGE OF DEVELOPMENT STUDIES,
ADDIS ABABA UNIVERSITY

APR,2020
Addis Ababa
 Proposal Approval Page

MezgebuAyele ____________ ___________________

Name of the Candidate Date Signature

MeskeremAbi (PhD) _____________ ___________________

Thesis advisor Date Signature

___________________ _______________ ___________________

Name of the Examiner Date Signature

___________________ _______________ ___________________

Name of the Examiner Date Signature

___________________ _______________ ___________________

Head, CFSS Date Signature
Contents Page
List of Figure v
List of Tables...............................................................................................................................................vi
Abbreviations.............................................................................................................................................vii
1. Chapter One: Introduction...................................................................................................................13
1.1 Background of the Study.....................................................................................................................13
1.2 Statement of the Problem....................................................................................................................15
1.3. Objective of the study.........................................................................................................................17
1.3.1. General objective 17
1.3.2. Specific objectives are to: 17
1.4. Research Questions.............................................................................................................................17
1.5. Scope and limitations of the Study....................................................................................................17
1.6. Data Validity and Reliability.............................................................................................................18
1.7. Ethical Consideration 18
1.8. Significance of the Study....................................................................................................................19
1.9 Organizations of the Thesis.................................................................................................................19
2.Chapter Two: Related Literature Review............................................................................................20
2.1. Conceptual and Theoretical framework...........................................................................................21
2.2. Food Security situation at Global Level...........................................................................................24
2.3. Food Security situation in Africa.......................................................................................................25
2.4. Food security situation in Ethiopia...................................................................................................25
2.5. Picture of Food security in Amhara region......................................................................................26
2.5.1. Theoretical and conceptual models of food insecurity.................................................................27
2.5.2. Major factors affecting food security in Ethiopia.........................................................................28
2.5.3. Households Coping Mechanisms against Food Insecurity...........................................................31
2.5.4. Conceptual model of Household Food Insecurity.........................................................................32
3. CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY....................................................................34
3.1. Description of the Study Area............................................................................................................34
3.2. Research design...................................................................................................................................36
3.3. Sample techniques and sample sizes.................................................................................................36
3.4 Sample size determination..................................................................................................................37
3.5. Data collection types and sources......................................................................................................39
3.6. Tools of Data Collection.....................................................................................................................39
3.7 Techniques of data analysis................................................................................................................40
Reference....................................................................................................................................................45
List of Figures Page
Figure1: The conceptual model of household food insecurity……....…………….….….14
Figure 2: Jamma Woreda in its national and regional settings ………………….…...…17
List of Tables Page

Table 1: Distribution of Sample Household heads.………….…………………….…20

Table 2: expected sign of independent variable…………………………………….…24

Abbreviations
ADLI Agricultural Development-Led Industrialization
CSA Central Statistical Authority
DFID Department for International Development

FAO Food and Agricultural Organization

FGD Focus Group Discussion

FSS Food security strategies

HDR Humanitarian and Disaster Resilience Plan

IFPRI International Food Policy Research Institute

MoARD Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development

NDRMC National Disaster Risk Management Commission

NGOS Non-Governmental Organizations
OCHA Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
PSNP Productive Safety Net Program
UDHR Universal Declaration of Human Rights
UNDP United Nations Development Programme
WFP World Food Programme
1. Chapter One: Introduction
1.1 Background of the Study
We are living in a world where more than one billion people are poor, 800 million are food
insecure, and where about 170 million children are malnourished .The problem of hunger and
food insecurity have global dimension and are likely to persists and even increase dramatically in
some regions due to the anticipated increase in the world’s population and stresses on natural
resources and also the households with insufficient access to food often face other challenges
related to food insecurity including poor health and a decline in productivity. These challenges
can often create a vicious circle where households are unable to produce enough food, even in
good years,because they are attacking chronic health issues and are unable to work to their full
potential has led much of the development agenda to search for specific areas for intervention
given limited resources and growing populations in many developing countries (IFPRI,2010).

According to FAO (2010), the total number of undernourished people in the World is estimated
to have reached 1023 million in 2009 but, is declined to 925 million in 2010. Though the number
of hungry people in the world is declining, the hunger remains high. Currently, the number of
hungry and chronically undernourished people in the world reached 821 million, which is up
from 811 the previous year (WFP,2019). The majority of food insecure and hungry people live in
developing countries, which account for 98%. More than 820 million people in the world are still
hungry today, underscoring the immense challenge of achieving the Zero Hunger target by 2030.
Despite the many programs and projects on food security, there are still 795 million of people
those are food insecure people around the world with many of them living in developing
countries particularly in Africa (FAO, IFAD, WFP,2015). The number of people in the world
affected by chronic food insecurity began to rise in 2014 going from 775 million people to 777
million in 2015 and is now estimated to have increased further to 815 million in 2016 (FAO et
al,2017). Sub-Saharan countries vary considerably in their food insecurity status. However, the
region has the highest share of food insecure people and about 301million people which is
equivalent to 31.7% of the total population are food insecure (USDA, 2017).

Sub-Saharan Africa is the most vulnerable region in the world currently facing widespread
chronic food insecurity as well as persistent threats of famine (FAO,WHO and WFP, 2019).
Ethiopia is one of the most food-insecure and famine-affected countries in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Over 80 percent of the Ethiopian population lives in rural areas and is heavily dependent on rain-
fed agriculture;this makes them extremely vulnerable to changes in weather conditions(Anderson
et al.,2009). Food insecurity has become one of the defining features of poverty in Ethiopia. The
state of poverty in Ethiopia is among the worst in the world measured by most socio-economic
and human development indicators.

There are millions of people who have been facing food insecurity that can be explained as either
chronic or transitory in nature (Desalegn et al,2013; African Development Bank, 2014). But also,
the number of food-insecure people in the country increasing from time to time; which was
estimated to 2.9 million in 2014 and 4.5 million in August 2015 and by the end of the same year
these numbers had more than doubled to 10.2 million food-insecure- people. Drought and land
degradation, population pressure and instability are major sources of food security problems in
Ethiopia (Abduselam,2017). The food security situation in Ethiopia is highly linked to regular
food shortages and famine in the country, which is associated with recurrent drought
(Deribe,2018). According to CSA, the Ethiopian population will exceed 126 million by the year
2030. This increase in population will impose additional stress on the already depleted resources
of land, water, food, and energy (Dessale,2019).

The vulnerable groups in Ethiopia, an estimated 2.9 million people require relief food assistance
in 2015, an increase from 2.7 million for the same period in 2014. All of the above data indicate
the food security situation in Ethiopia has been a long-standing challenge to the government,
donors, and other international organizations.Accordioningto(WFP,2019), Amhara Region
experienced the highest percentage of food insecure households (36.1percent), followed by Afar
(26.1 percent) and Tigray (24.7).

Nowadays, food insecurity has gained great attention by policy makers, researchers,
governmental and non-governmental organizations and development workers. In line with this,
ensuring food security remains a key issue for the government of Ethiopia. Jamma Woreda is one
of the drought-prone Woreda of South Wollo Zone. The main reasons for selecting Jamma
woreda has been repeatedly prone to seasonal food insecurity even during the periods of good
rain. So the purpose of this study will be to examine the factors determining household food
insecurity in the study area.
1.2 Statement of the Problem
About 870 million people in the world are estimated to have been undernourished (in terms of
dietary energy supply) in the period 2010–2012. This figure represents 12.5 percent of the global
population or one in eight people. The vast majority of these, 852 million, live in developing
countries, where the prevalence of undernourishment is now estimated at 14.9 percent of the
population (FAO,2012).Despite the reduction in the food poverty index, the scale of food
insecurity and malnutrition remains serious23 million people have insufficient income to meet
their food needs (WFP,2011).Nevertheless, the latest FAO estimates indicate that about 805
million people in the globe are chronically undernourished in between the years 2012–14, of
which an estimated 791 million chronically hungry people were from developing countries. This
means that about one in every nine people in the world and one in eight people in developing
regions still has insufficient food for an active and healthy life. Food security in Africa has come
under extremely threats due to some factors some of which are natural while some are artificial
depending on the circumstances and some are socio-economic and political the countries
involved. Ethiopia is one of the poorest countries in the world with more than 27.8 percent of its
population is believed to be living below the poverty line in the year 2012 and is ranked 173 out
of 182 countries in Human Development Index (Ermias,2018). In 2018, an estimated 8.13
million people were food insecure and in need of urgent assistance according to OCHA. In
March, around 7.9 million were in need of food-related humanitarian assistance – including 3.2
million in Oromia, 1.8 million in Somali region and 977,000 people in Amhara, according to the
Humanitarian and Disaster Resilience Plan (HDRP,2018).The number of food-insecure people in
need of urgent action decreased mainly as a result of a marked but still partial recovery of
pastoral conditions in 2018, from the severe2016/17 drought, but the number of food-
insecure in need of urgent action is forecast to remain unchanged in
(FSIN,2019).

The severity of food insecurity problem in Ethiopia varies from region to region depending up on
natural resources availability. Drought is the only significant cause of chronic food insecurity in
Ethiopia (Tsegamariam,2019). Currently, there is a growing consensus that food insecurity and
poverty problems are closely related in the Ethiopian context. More than 50% of the total
population, of whom the majority reside in rural areas, does not have access to the medically
recommended minimum average daily intake of 2100cal per person per day (Adimasu
etal.,2019).

It is the fact that hunger and food shortages have been widespread in rural and urban parts of
Ethiopia for many generations. Since the Derg regime took the position, the issues of food
security became a concern in public policy address and a variety of program initiatives were put
in place to tackle the problem (Desalegn et al, 2013). This means that before the Derg regime,
few institutions were operating in the food and agriculture sector and has not been increased
awareness of the complex causes of food shortages and a growing determination on the part of
decision-makers to bring an end of the food shortage and hunger from the vulnerable people in
the country. Poverty and food insecurity are a reality in rural Ethiopia (World Bank 2015).
Amhara regional state is the most affected by food insecurity in Ethiopia. One of these is the
mixed farming production system area which is South wollo zone. Most of the land resources
(mainly the soils and vegetation) of this part of the country have been highly degraded because
of the interplay between some environmental and human factors such as relief, climate,
population pressure and the resultant over-cultivation of the land, deforestation of vegetation and
overgrazing. The area is generally considered as resource poor with limited or no potential and
hence highly vulnerable to drought (Mota etal.,2019).Jamma Woreda is one of the food insecure
areas (Mulumebet,2010).The rate of population growth is increasing due to lack of knowledge on
family planning, services on the part of the household head, limited or no health-related service
providers and socio-cultural influence instated of (Mulugeta.,2016).

The productivity of agricultural system in Jamma woreda is very low. The poor production and
productivity of crop and livestock resulted in food insecurity (Dessale,2019). This implies the
existence of socioeconomic, demographic and other factors underlying the poverty and food
insecurity problem in the study area. Having this background, this study will be, to examine the
determinants of household food insecurity in Jamma woreda, Amhara Region. To the best of my
knowledge, there are no studies done on household food insecurity in Jamma woreda.
Therefore, this study will be conducted in order to fill this gap by sharing strong empirical
evidence on determinants of food insecurity and household food security status in the Jamma
woreda. The result of this study will be intended to be useful for policy makers, land use
planners, and development practitioners in Ethiopia in general and in the study area in particular,
who are seeking to understand how best to respond to the problems of food insecurity by
identifying their major determinants. Moreover, the households will be able to gain adequate
knowledge on understanding the best ways of alleviating the problems of food insecurity.

1.3. Objective of the study

1.3.1. General objective
The general objective of this study is to investigate the determinants of household food insecurity
in JammaWoreda, Amhara Region
1.3.2. Specific objectives are to:
1. analyze the socio-cultural and demographic food situation of the households in
JammaWoreda
2. examine factors limiting food production in Jamma Woreda
3. examine the effects of some variables that may influence food insecurity of the
households and identify the most important determinants of the household in Jamma
Woreda
4. examine the food insecurity situation of the people living in the study area

1.4. Research Questions

i. Which socio-economic factors relate with and best explain the levels of food insecurity of
these households?
ii. What is the relationship between food insecurity and its determinants?
iii. How are the coping strategies followed by the households against the risks of food
shortage?
iv. Is food insecurity a result of a lack of productions?

1.5. Scope and limitations of the Study

The research is delimited geographically because of time and financial constraints. Regarding the
geographical delimitation, it is confined to the Jammaworeda only on specifically selected three
kebeles namely, Micha, Gomatsa and Boren.In addition, the study will be focused to examine the
determinants of food insecurity such as socio-cultural, education, agricultural inputs, dependency
ratio, household size, livestock own; land size; income of the household head; access to forest
resource; access to market; infrastructure and dependency ratio of the households. Concerning
the conceptual dimension, since the concept of food insecurity is multi-dimensional; the
researcher could not cover all concepts and all critical factors causing food insecurity within a
short period and limited budget.

1.6. Data Validity and Reliability

To check the clarity of the feedback questions, reliability and validity tests was conducted
before the data collection. the present study was to test the construct validity, internal
consistency and convergent validity of the Household Food Insecurity Access Scale (HFIAS)
in measuring household food insecurity in Jammaworeda, and to determine socio-economic
characteristics associated with household food insecurity.

After the test, some modifications were made on the interview guide and the purpose of
establishing reliability and validity in research is essential to ensure that data are sound and
replicable. The questions were generating a recall period of four weeks (30 days). The
respondent will be asked an occurrence question that is, whether the condition in the question
happened at all in the past four weeks (yes or no). If the respondent answers “yes” to an
occurrence question, a frequency-of-occurrence question is asked to determine whether the
condition happened rarely (once or twice), sometimes (three to ten times) or often (more than
ten times) in the past four weeks. Study subjects will be also informed about the aim of the
study and confidentiality will be kept. The questionnaire format will be tested before the main
study for its reliability and finally, the data was checked for its completeness before analysis.

1.7. Ethical Consideration

The concerned people in the Jamma Woreda will be communicate through a formal letter from
Addis Ababa University food security and development studies department office. The
objectives of the research will be clearly explained to focus group discussions, key informants.

In case of data collection, ethical considerations will be seriously taken into account to ensure the
protection, integrity, anonymity, consents and other human elements of the informants. The
respondents will not identify by names and their consent will be required during interview and
discussions
1.8. Significance of the Study
This study would provide findings on status of food insecurity and its determinants of rural
household. Identifying and understanding factors that cause food\insecurity would afford
information for policy makers, planners, governmental and nongovernmental organizations
which are working in the areas of food security program in order to modify and re-plan food
security program interventions and take measurements on causes of food insecurity. Moreover,
the concerned organizations and institutions that have interest of interventions in the study area
will get additional information and better understanding of local conditions so that enables them
to design relevant programs that targets and aims at combating critical factors causing food
insecurity among farm households of the study area.

Furthermore, by analyzing the challenges linked with food insecurity in the study area, the data
obtained from the study will help as a springboard for the researchers as they are conducting and
investigating further study on related topics among rural farm households. Finally, the study was
contribute for the development practitioners and policy makers to have better knowledge as they
was assess the need for assistance, judge the effectiveness of existing programs design in helping
such people with food insecurity as to where and how to intervene and respond food crisis
situation in the study area. Furthermore, there is no or only small number of researches on
household food insecurity determinants and the Dietary consumption statues of Jamma woreda
household heads. The output of this research, was fill the knowledge gap in local and
institutional responses to household food security in the study area.

1.9 Organizations of the Thesis

This research thesis contains five chapters. The first chapter introduces the background, the
statement of the problem, objectives, justification, significance and limitations of the study. The
second chapter covers review of related literature that is related to the subject matter. The third
chapter is about methodology, which consists of description of study area, sample design,
sampling techniques, data collection and data analysis methods. The fourth chapter discusses the
key findings of the study and Analysis parts of the study. the last chapter deals with conclusion
and recommendations.
2.Chapter Two: Related Literature Review
Food insecurity is an evolving concept. There are many definitions of food insecurity, which is a
clear indication of differing views and approaches to the problem. FAO defined food insecurity
as “a situation that exists when people lack secure access to sufficient amounts of safe and
nutritious food for normal growth and development and an active and healthy life” (FAO,2010;
Marion,2011). According to this definition, factors that may lead to a situation of food insecurity
include non-availability of food lack of access, improper utilization and instability over a certain
time period. Household food insecurity in Ethiopia has been studied by many researchers, who
came up with different findings. Food security situation in Ethiopia and causes of food
insecurity, and found that about 10% of Ethiopia’s citizens are chronically food insecure and this
figure rises to more than 15% during frequent drought years.

This is partially so due to the multi-disciplinary and multi-sectoral nature of food security. Many
disciplines including agriculture, anthropology, economics, nutrition, public policy, and
sociology, as well as numerous national and international governmental and non-governmental
agencies have been engaged with the term food security (Jones et al.,2013).

The predominant way of thinking about food insecurity has changed considerably over time.
Food insecurity has become more holistic in nature, complex and people-cantered
(Nombo,2007). Historically, food insecurity has been considered in terms of overall regional,
national or even global food supplies and shortfalls in supply compared to requirements
(Maxwell, 1996).

Food insecurity is defined as inability of a household or a nation to meet target consumption

levels in the face of fluctuating production, prices, and incomes. The Life Sciences Research
Office (LSRO) of USA defines food insecurity as the “limited or uncertain availability of
nutritionally adequate and safe foods or limited or uncertain ability to acquire acceptable foods in
socially acceptable ways” (Bickel et al.,2000)

2.1. Conceptual and Theoretical framework

Food security and hunger are by no means tightly-defined concepts and different definitions arise
depending on the number of factors involved. These include the scope of the analysis, namely
whether the causes or the effects of food insecurity are being examined and whether the situation
is real or potential; whether the analysis is in qualitative or quantitative terms; and the level at
which analysis is being carried out: a macro- or country-wide level, a meso- or regional level, or
a micro- or household level (Masset, 2010).

Whereas food security describes adequate access to enough food at all times ensuring a healthy
active life, food insecurity basically measures hunger. This was seen at the 1996 Rome World
Food Summit when governments pledged to halve world hunger levels by 2015 and again in
Target 3 of the MDG’s aim to ‘halve between 1990 and 2015, the proportion of people who
suffer from hunger but in the years 2011-2013, an estimated 842 million people were suffering
from chronic hunger. The United Nations (UN) recognized the Right to Food in the Declaration
of Human Rights in 1948 and has since noted that it is vital for the enjoyment of all other rights
(Parvathamma,2015). As article 25 of UDHR puts it “everyone has the right to a standard of
living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and his family including food, clothing,
housing, and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of
unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in
circumstances beyond his control”.

Food security was understood as adequacy of food supply at global and national levels until the
mid-1970’s. This view favored simply food production-oriented variables and overlooked the
multiple forces which in many ways affect food access. Evidences show that during the last two
decades, food production has been increasing in the world. However, large amount of food at
global level does not guarantee food security at national level. Moreover, availability of enough
food at national level does not necessarily ensure household food security (Tsegay,2009). For
instance, in 1990, the calorie supply at global level was more than 110 percent compared to the
total requirement.
However, during the same period, more than 100 million people were affected by famine and
more than a quarter of the world’s population was short of enough food (UNDP, 1992).The
conceptual framework of food security has also progressively developed and expanded with
occurrence of hunger, famine, and malnutrition are increasing from time to time in developing
countries. The idea of food security attained wider attention since the 1980s after the debate on
‘accesses to food and the focus of the unit shifted from global and national levels to household
and individual levels. This paradigm came with new concept and definition of food security and
it led to two additional major shifts in thinking; from a first food approach to a livelihood
perspective and from objective indicators to subjective perceptions (Maxwell et al., 1994). The
most commonly accepted definition of Food security is “access by all people at all times to
enough food for an active and healthy life” (World Bank, 1986).

Food insecurity is a situation in which individuals have neither physical nor economical access to
the nourishment they need. A household is said to be food insecure when its consumption falls to
less than 80% of the daily minimum recommended allowance of caloric intake for an individual
to be active and healthy. In particular, food insecurity includes low food intake, variable access
to food, and vulnerability- a livelihood strategy that generates adequate food in good times but is
not resilient against shocks. These outcomes correspond broadly to chronic, cyclical, and
transitory food insecurity, and all are endemic in Ethiopia (Devereux, 2000). When an individual
or population lacks, or is potentially vulnerable due to the absence of, one or more factors
outlined above, then it suffers from, or is at risk of, food insecurity. Food insecurity is
conceptualized in several ways. It is conceptualized as transitory (when it occurs in times of
crisis), and chronic (when it occurs continuingly).Researchers and policymakers have begun to
use the terms "permanent food insecurity" as a chronic and "periodic food insecurity" as a
transitory to describe the different types of food insecurity (FAO,2010).Individuals may
experience "periodic food insecurity" if they do not have access to healthy food due to seasonal
variation or for brief periods. "Permanent food insecurity" has been used to describe long-term
periods without food.

The WHO states that there are three pillars that determine food security: food availability,
food access, and food use. The FAO adds a fourth pillar: the stability of the first three
dimensions of food security over time. In 2009, the World Summit on Food Security stated
that the "four pillars of food security are availability, access, utilization, and stability.

Food Availability: according to FAO (2013), food availability is a dimension of food security
that plays a prominent role. Enough supply (availability) of food to a population is a necessary
but not sufficient condition for food access. Food availability relates to the supply of food
through production, distribution, and exchange is determined by a variety of factors including
land and use; soil management; crop selection, breeding, and management; livestock breeding
and management; and harvesting. Crop production can be impacted by changes in rainfall and
temperatures. Food distribution involves the storage, processing, transport, packaging, and
marketing of food. Food-chain infrastructure and storage technologies on farms can also impact
the amount of food wasted in the distribution process. Food availability can be seen as a physical
availability of food and it is a direct result of individual access to resources. Food availability
combined with food access leads to food security at the individual household level.

Food Accessibility: food access refers to the affordability and allocation of food, as well as the
preferences of individuals and households’ (1996) also puts “the physical and economic access
to sufficient food “as the basic point of the food security definition.

The assets of a household, including income, land, products of labor, inheritances, and gifts can
determine a household's access to food. However, the ability to access to sufficient food may not
lead to the purchase of food over other materials and services. Demographics and education
levels of members of the household as well as the gender of the household head determine the
preferences of the household, which influences the type of food that are purchased. A
household's access to enough and nutritious food may not assure adequate food intake of all
household members, as intra-household food allocation may not sufficiently meet the
requirements of each member of the household (Hiwot,2014).

Utilization: proper biological use of food, requiring a diet with sufficient energy and essential
nutrients, potable water and adequate sanitation, as well as knowledge of food storage,
processing, basic nutrition and child care and illness management.
The concept of food security also has spatial and temporal dimensions. It is possible to analyze
food security at the global, continental, national, sub-national, village, household, or individual
level (Hoddinott,1999). Access to healthcare is another determinant of food utilization, since the
health of individuals controls how the food is metabolized for example, intestinal parasites can
take nutrients from the body and decrease food utilization. Sanitation can also decrease the
occurrence and spread of diseases that can affect food utilization. Education about nutrition and
food preparation can impact food utilization and improve this pillar of food security
(Maxwell ,1996).
Stability: food stability refers to the ability to obtain food over time. Food security can be
transitory, seasonal, or chronic. In transitory food insecurity, food may be unavailable during
certain periods of time. At the food production level, natural and drought result in crop failure
and decreased food availability. Civil conflicts can also decrease access to food. Instability in
markets resulting in food-price spikes can cause transitory food insecurity.

2.2. Food Security situation at Global Level

In2016, the number of undernourished people in the world increased to an estimated 815 million,
up from 777 million in 2015 but still down from about 900 million in the year 2000. Similarly,
while the prevalence of undernourishment is projected to have increased to an estimated 11
percent in 2016, this is still well below the level of a decade ago (FAO, IFAD, UNICEF, WFP
and WHO, 2017). the percentage of undernourishment is declining but we can understand that
the number of undernourishments is still bigger and as we observe from 2016 result it has some
incremental situations from the past four years. But within decades long at a global level the
estimated total number of hungry people worldwide has declined by 218 million, from 1,011
million in 1990-92 to 792.5 million in 2014-16 (FAO,2015).

The majority of countries already experiencing high-to-extreme food insecurity face risk factors
that could worsen their food security through 2025 some countries that have low-to moderate
food insecurity today is at risk of experiencing worsening conditions during the next 10 years.

The intersection of food insecurity with governance gaps will probably result in social
disruption, political turmoil, or conflict (ICA, 2015). On the other hand, the problem of food
security, its intensity and impact vary from region to region (FAO, IFAD, UNICEF, WFP and
WHO 2017).
Hence the above empirical evidences told us the issue is not only confronted by the developing
countries rather the developed countries too in terms of malnutrition but Africa as a continent
took the bigger share of the problem and three through holding 25 countries which are in need of
food emergency and 333.2 million peoples affected by food insecurity in 2017 respectively and
306.7 million peoples out of the total 333.2 million peoples affected by food insecurity are found
in Sub Sharan Africa.

2.3. Food Security situation in Africa

In Africa, the Average Dietary Energy Supply Adequacy has increased by about 8.41% since
1990-1992, though has remained stagnant since 2009-11 although unequally and at below the
average for all developing regions. The overall energy supply adequacy average for
Africa,116%, indicates, generally speaking, a sufficient level of food supply, which has
significantly contributed to reducing prevalence of malnutrition in Africa. But the continent is
still in a big trouble in food security since FAO (2015) states approximately one person out of
four in SSA is estimated to be undernourished today compared to a ratio of one out of three in
1990-92.

In addition there is a difference in encountering food security problems from region to region
within the continent as FAO (2015) indicates that Compared to other sub-regions, Western
Africa has made significant progress, having reduced the number of undernourished people
(WFS) by almost 13 million between 1990-92 and 2014-16.But Since 1990-92, other subregions
experienced an increase in the absolute number of undernourished people, approximately 20
percent and 2 percent respectively in Eastern and Southern Africa.

FAO assesses that globally44 countries, of which 34 are in Africa, continue to be in need of
external assistance for food. Agricultural droughts have aggravated food insecurity conditions,
due to reduced harvests that also caused price hikes. Conflict driven crises continued to be the
primary cause of the high levels of severe food insecurity (FAO,2020).

2.4. Food security situation in Ethiopia

Ethiopia is a highly famine affected country in the world as Abduselam (2017). The Year of
event and Major relative incidences of famine after 1953 were 13 famine seasons still 2016.
Which indicates as the country is highly vulnerable to food insecurity. Food insecurity situation
in Ethiopia is highly linked up to severe, recurring food shortage and famine, which are
associated to recurrent drought /ibid/.Thus Ethiopia is a predominantly drought prone country as
history shows and following that famine were occurred, and food security problems are always
the homework of every government that administers the country whether they tackle it
successfully or not. Besides according to FAO, (2017) situation report 5.6 million People are
food insecure in 2017. At the start of 2016, more than 10.2 million people were in need of
emergency food aid, 1.7 million household’s seed insecure and 2.4 million households in need of
livestock support.

The Ethiopian agriculture and livestock production are mostly traditional and heavily depends
on the erratic and unpredictable rainfall. As a result, yields are low and post-harvest losses are
high, creating widespread food insecurity (Fayera, 2016). Likewise, about 4 to 6 million people
are estimated to suffer from chronic/transitory food insecurity across the country as a result of
weather related hazards.Birara et al (2015), illustrates the causes for food insecurity in Ethiopia
are mainly backward agriculture, land degradation Drought, Population Pressure, poor
infrastructure facility, low level of off farm/ non-farm activity. Over the past four years between
2.2 and 6.4 million additional people were food insecure or not able to meet their food needs in
the short term due to transitional factors. They are temporarily dependent on relief food
assistance (FAO, 2015).

while in Ethiopia know Impact of drought on local livelihood systems estimated 8.5million
people are estimated to be severely food insecure in early 2020, mainly in eastern agricultural
areas. In northern and southeastern agro-pastoral areas due topoor2019“Karan/Belg/Gu/Genna”
seasonal rains between early and mid-2019.As of January, about 512 000 people have been
affected by floods triggered by torrential rains since October (FAO,2020).

2.5. Picture of Food security in Amhara region

More than 37% of the total population is living in absolute poverty (earning less than a dollar a
day), which makes the region’s food security situation more precarious compared to the national
average 44.4 % (WFP,2009). The results revealed that the incidence of household food insecurity
was 0.48. This implies that about 48% of the sampled households were not able to meet the daily
recommended caloric requirement (Mesfin,2014).
Ethiopian public Health institute, (2016), indicates in their study of food insecurity. Therefore,
the empirical literatures reveal that the region is the most Food insecure in the country since it’s
below the national average. The Amhara regional Government issued a drought response plan for
people suffering from the impact of drought due to poor summer/kiremt rains in Central Gondar,
Northern Gondar, North Wollo and Wag Himra zones. Reports from Amhara region indicate that
food insecurity is growing in affected areas following consecutive localized poor performance of
rainy seasons. Livestock deaths and unseasonal livestock migration are also reported. The
regional government launched a three-months response plan to provide food aid for the affected
people. According to the Drought Response Plan issued by the Amhara Disaster Prevention,
Food Security Program on 23 October, the region has requested the federal government to assist
some 126,000 people for the next three months in addition to the existing 756,000 emergency
food aid beneficiaries targeted in the 2019 Humanitarian Response Plan. The regional
government also requested the support from partners to address the identified multi-sector needs
(OCHA,2019).

2.5.1. Theoretical and conceptual models of food

insecurity
A) The Food Availability Decline (FAD) Approach

The Food Availability Decline Approach had been a dominant theoretical explanatory
framework for food crises since the eighteenth century until the year 1980.The availability
declines per capita of food for consuming unit. This approach conceived famine as shortages of
food supplies per capita, motivated by natural factors; e.g., drought, floods and other calamities
that undermine crops; or demographic factors, i.e., vegetative growth that goes beyond supply
(Hewitt, 1993).

B) The Food Entitlement Decline (FED) Approach

Amartya Sen’s influential book ‘poverty and Famine’ (1981) decisively shifted the focus of
famine analysis from supply side to the demand side. The entitlement approach emphasizes
access to food, or people’s relationship to the food, rather than the availability of food (Devereux
and Maxwell,2003). The empirical review for this study is organized some causes of food
insecurity documented in Ethiopia and other developing countries of the world particularly in
Africa. and generalizes the findings of certain previous studies concerning the determinants of
food insecurity.

2.5.2. Major factors affecting food security in Ethiopia

Different factors that affecting food security status of the farmer in Ethiopia. Access to
agricultural extension services, off farm income, number of oxen owned, total land size and
safety net participation are found to be the major determinants of household food insecurity that
significantly reduce the level of HHFS. Socio-Cultural Factors, Poor Asset Base of the Rural
Households, Environmental crises and Demographic Factors. Whereas age dependency ratio,
family size, crop disease incidence and fertilizer utilization are uncovered to be significant and
positive covariates of household food insecurity in (Nagesh &Alemu,2013). Although
investigations concerning farm households’ food shortage have been limited, the situation in
Ethiopia does not deviate much from the condition in other developing regions. In general, the
following combination of factors has resulted in serious and growing problem of food insecurity
in Ethiopia. Some of the major factors influencing food security are:

A. Demographic factors

Rapid population growth leads to a demand for additional land and clearing of new areas for
expansion of farmland and settlement. As per to FDRE (1996), the Ethiopian Food security
strategy which was issued in1996 stipulates that high population growth rate is one of the main
impediments to ensure food security. Provision of effective education, health and other essential
social and economic services may alleviate the problem (FDRE,1996). In support of the above
statement Dagnew (2002) argues that rapid population growth among other factors is the cause
for natural resource degradation which aggravates insecurity problems in rural households. At
the micro level, household size is one of the factors expected to have influence on food security
status of households. The majority of farm households in Ethiopia are small scale semi
subsistence producers with limited participation in non-agricultural activities since landholding
size and financial capital to purchase agricultural inputs is very limited. Kidane (2005) in his
work found that family size tends to exert more pressure on consumption than the labor it.
Boserup (1965) sees population growth as a force, favoring an adoption and diffusion of
technological innovation that expands agricultural production, thereby reducing vulnerability to
food insecurity and hunger. She argues that the positive effect of population growth is by making
financially feasible investment in infrastructures such as irrigation, energy, transport and
improved production technologies (Degefa,2005).

contributes to production. Another demographic factor that strongly influences household food
security is sex of the household head. Studies by Degafa (2002), Ramakrishna and Assefa (2002)
and Kidane et al. (2005) independently conducted studies in different parts of rural Ethiopia and
came out with compared to their male counterparts. This is due to the fact that, the researchers
justify, female household heads have limited access to livelihood assets like land, education,
saving, labor force and oxen (drought power), livestock and credit services.

B. Environmental factors

Environmental factors include land, water, vegetation, soil, and climate upon which agricultural
activities (crop production, livestock rearing, fishery, forestry, apiculture, horticulture and others
activities) are based. Hence, any hazard against these resources can affect food security situation
of a given community (Yared, 2001). In explaining the effect of environmental changes on the
livelihood of farmers in Ethiopia, Getachew (1995) argued that the traditional farming systems of
the Ethiopian peasants consumes and exploits the natural resource base, therefore, resource
degradation, depletion and environmental problems are inevitable. They also elaborated that
environmental disturbances and over exploitation of natural resources leads to the prevalence of
natural catastrophes including flood, drought, water-logging, excessive heating and the like
which are the immediate causes of famine in Ethiopia. It was also discussed that the rainfall
variability, degraded soil, scanty vegetation cover which because ecological imbalances coupled
with improper and poor land management practices and the accelerating population significantly
leads to production decline.

C. Economic factors

The manifestations of economic problems are considered as the constraints of agricultural

production. According to Degefa (2002), lack of cash, absence of off-farm incomes, shortage of
farm oxen, shortage of modern farm inputs, traditional farm implements and practices were the
major economic factors. In explaining the implications of these constraints, he stated that farmers
with no oxen are more vulnerable to household food shortages as they rent out their land to other
farmers with better pulling power or has to get oxen on a rent which makes them loose some of
their produce through shares. In understanding the effect of economic factors in households’ food
production, research byYared (2001) verify that agricultural inputs such as improved seeds, fertilizers,
herbicides and farm implements which are vital to increase production and productivity are not well
accessed by most peasants due to high cost of chemical fertilizers and improved seeds, poor performance
ofthe market, lack of competitions and monopolization of input supply in the hands of the government,
lack of access to credit facilities and low market values of agricultural producers.

D. Social factors

According to Degefa (2002), social factors such as shortage of human labor, health problems,
low levels of education, poor food rationing and absence of traditional saving are among the
causes to the occurrence of seasonal food shortages in farm households. In support to the above
statement, Workneh (2004) states labor is an important determinant in peasant food production
as most agricultural operations in small farming systems are labor-intensive. Similarly, he argues
that farmers’ access to appropriate technologies and knowledge is crucial for raising agricultural
production.

E. Socio-cultural factors

Education has a tremendous influence on the food security status of households. Educational
attainment by the household head could lead to awareness of the possible advantages of
modernizing agriculture by means of technological inputs; enable them to read instructions on
fertilizer packs and diversification of household incomes which, in turn, would enhance
household’s food supply (Kidane et al., 2005). Socio-cultural events such as eating habit and
food preference, cultural ceremonies and festivals also influence the food security status of the
given communities and way of saving or expenditure, also directly or indirectly affects the food
security situation of that particular community.

F. Political factors
Inappropriate governmental policies and institutional weakness are main responsible factors for
the recurrence of food shortage or poverty and underdevelopment in general. Whenever food
shortage or famine occur in a given country; the government is responsible for either causing the
crisis or failing to prevent it. In Ethiopian circumstances lack of appropriate development polices
and strategies is one of the main factors which results vulnerability to disaster (Degefa, 2002).As
explained by Getnet (2002), the neglect of peasant agriculture in the formulation and execution
of macro- economic policies, focusing on growth through industrialization during the Imperial
Regime producers’ cooperatives and state farms, during the Derg Regime, as well as the poor
agriculture-industry linkage by the current FDRE Regime are the major causes of poverty and
food insecurity in rural Ethiopia.

G. Access to infrastructure

Access to infrastructure such as market center and roads promote livelihood diversification and
agricultural intensification. Adequate infrastructure, especially main and feeder roads that
improve access to necessary input-fertilizer, seed, pesticide chemicals and other agricultural
implements are very indispensable (Osman and Tesfahun, 2003).Although, the current
government has made a significant progress particularly in road development, the sector is still
weak even compared with the African average. World Bank (2007) reported that due to lack of
proper and on time transportation facilities, the total post-harvest production loss reached up
to30%. Generally, as indicated in many literatures, inadequate infrastructures and social services
development such as road, transportation, communication, electrification, appropriate
technology, education and health services and agricultural services would be the major
challenges to sustain the growth of agricultural production and food security.

2.5.3. Households Coping Mechanisms against Food

Insecurity
Empirical evidences conveyed that, due to the economy’s dependence on weather sensitive
agriculture sector, the incidence of food insecurity was high. To reduce the prevalence of food
insecurity the government has been and is formulating and implementing different programs as
well as policies. In addition to the role of government, to cope up with the food insecurity
situation households in the country used different coping mechanisms (Seid, Biruk,2017).
Different findings in Ethiopia revealed that farm households in rural parts of Ethiopia apply
different coping mechanisms which includes sales of a livestock, agricultural and certain types of
off-farm employment and migration to other areas, taking a loan for the purchase of grains,
gathering and selling fire wood and charcoal burning for energy, conducting petty trade, daily
wage labor, and handicrafts (Birara et al.,2015). According to some research findings, rural
households were more likely food insecure than urban despite the fact that rural households were
more likely to have a better chance to access agricultural products (Motbainor et al.,2016).
Various studies conducted in the Northern parts of Ethiopia confirmed that reducing meal
consumption, postponing special festivals, selling small ruminants, harvesting food crops that are
not well matured, livestock selling to purchase food, loan/gift requesting from relatives, reducing
school and medical expenses, relief assistance and selling farm tools were used as a coping
mechanisms to food insecurity (Arega, 2015). Coping mechanisms used by farm households in
rural Ethiopia include livestock sales, agricultural employment, certain types of off-farm
employment and migration to other areas, requesting grain loans, sale of wood or charcoal, small
scale trading, selling cow dung and crop residues, reduction of food consumption, consumption
of meat from their livestock, consumption of wild plants, reliance on relief assistance, relying on
remittances from relatives, selling of clothes, and dismantling of parts of their houses for sale
(Bedeke, 2012)

2.5.4. Conceptual model of Household Food Insecurity

The factors that determines food insecurities are education, household age’s, input availability,
technology, adoption, farm size, land quality, price of input and credit have been identify as the
available income with the households. Family size, income distribution with household, food
price, employment statues are the determinants of access of the household and gender
expenditure on food, dietary intake, dietary safety, and health are considered as the determinant
of utilization. Education has a tremendous influence on the food security status
of households. Educational attainment by the household head could lead to
awareness of the possible advantages of modernizing agriculture by means
of technological inputs; enable them to read instructions on fertilizer packs
and diversification of household incomes which, in turn, would enhance
household’s food supply (Kidaneet al.,2005).
In general, many of the natural and human induced factors that made
Ethiopia a food-insecure
country at the national level over the last few decades are mentioned in a
paper by Degafa (2002)
food availability, food access and food utilization combined affect food
security status.

Food availability and food accesses themselves are influenced by various internal and external
factors. These factors are the determinants of the household’s access to resources, volume of
production and storage. Absorption capacity of the body which can be manifested through the
demand for verities, dietary composition and health aspects has significant impact on the level
and ability of the body to utilize a given food. These three factors altogether affect food security
status.

Maxwell (1996) classified household responses to food insecurity into two: coping strategies and
adaptive strategies. Coping strategies are responses made by households to improve the declining
situation of household’s food security while adaptive strategies involve, a permanent change in
the mix of ways in which food is required, irrespective of the year in question and it refer to
long-term adjustment. The most commonly practiced coping strategies during abnormal season
include
short term dietary change, changing intra household food distribution like skipping adults to feed
children, limiting size and frequency of food, borrowing and gifts from relative and friends,
mutual support mechanism, selling of livestock and fire wood, cash for work and relief
assistance, etc. while the commonly used adaptive strategies include risk minimization, food and
income diversification mechanism, planting damage resistance crop, cultivating marginal soils,
etc. (Maxwell,1996; Degefa, 2005).

Household food insecurity

Food availability Access to food

Figure 1: The conceptual model of household food
 Food utilization

Human Resources
Natural Capital Resources
House hold size
Resources -Land ownership
-Rainfall level -Livestock Education/Literacy
ownership
-Soil quality
-Oxen ownership Dependency ratio
-water availability
- Availability & use Dietary safety
-Access to forest of agricultural inputs
(Seed, fertilizer, etc.) Gender of head of
recourses
HH

Own constructed

3. CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

3.1. Description of the Study Area

The study will be carried out in Jamma woreda. It is located in the Northeastern part of Amhara
National Regional State, South Wollo Zone, Ethiopia. Geographically, the woreda is located
between 10°23′0″ and 10°27′0″N latitude and between 39°07′0″ and 39°24′0″E longitude. The
woreda has an altitude that ranges from 1600 to 2776 meters above sea level. Jamma woreda is
bordered on the Southeast by Qechene River which separates it from North Shewa Zone, on the
west by Kelala, on the North by Legahida, on the Northeast by Wore Ilu, on the South by Mida,
on the east by Gera Mider and Keya Gebrieal.TheWoreda capital town, Degolo, is about 260
kilometers away from Addis Ababa and 110 kilometers away from the zonal city of South Wollo
Zone, Dessie (Desale, 2019).

The Woreda has 23 kebeles. With traditional climatic zone classification JammaWoreda is
consisted of 77.1% Dega, 22.3% WoinaDega, and 0.6% moist Kola. The topography of the area
is heaving with medium slope and widely distributed gullies in sub-watersheds (Mulugeta,2016).
Due to rolling types of the area, the erosion hazards have series impact on farmland. Average
rainfall of Woreda is 1130 mm and the average land size per individual farmer is 1.5 hectares.
The woreda has uni-modal rainfall. Soil composition of the Woreda by color is as follow. 63%
black, 10% red, 17% gray and 19% brown with 84.2% clay 6.8% sandy and 9% alluvial
accumulation soil texture. The watersheds are dominated with verity clay soil (Abidu,2010).

JammaWoreda’spopulation is estimated to be around 148, 168 people based on 2016 CSA

projection and the recent Woreda’s population is estimated around 149,925 peoples (Jamma
Woreda communication office report, 2019). The Woreda has a population density of 147.58
persons per square kilometer. 32,165 households are counted with having 4.39 persons to each
household. The sole economy is crop production supplemented by livestock rearing. 80 % of the
Woreda’s population livelihood depends on mixed agriculture, 16.6% of the population depends
on crop production alone, 3% and 9.4% on handcrafts and trade respectively. Wheat, Teff, red
sorghum and pulses are the main crops grown in the area. Sheep, cattle and equines are the main
livestock types reared. Cash is generated from the sale of livestock and livestock products more
than crop sales in the area (Mulugeta,2016).

Figure 2: JammaWoreda in its national and regional settings Map

Source :( Moges, 2018)

3.2. Research design

This research has a cross-sectional study design because cross-sectional study designs used for
population-based surveys. It is not costly to perform and does not required a lot of time. This
study was use mixed type of research involving both qualitative and quantitative methods and to
determine the extent of a relationship between two or more variables using statistical data. The
strategy followed in this research is concurrent triangulation to explain concepts, characteristics,
descriptions and measures to express situations of the issues.

3.3. Sample techniques and sample sizes

The target population for this study was all household heads of Jammaworeda. This study
employed; two stages sampling techniques was selected the sample households. At the first
stage, Jamma Woreda was selected purposively because considering the size of people and the
other reasons the woreda has faced by food deficit (shortage) in every year and the population is
supported by safety net program and food aid is common in the area (Mulumebet,2010).

Although rate of population growth is increasing due to lack of knowledge on family planning,
services on the part of the household head, limited or no health-related service providers and
socio-cultural influence instated of (Mulugeta,2016). The productivity of agricultural system in
Jamma woreda is very low. The poor production and productivity of crop and livestock resulted
in food insecurity (Dessale,2019). Then at the second step three kebeles, namely. Micha, Boren
and Gomatsa will be selected by using simple random sampling techniques followed by the
proportional technique at the total of 49, 57, and 74 household heads respectively. Because of
time and financial constraints so the total sample sizes 180, household heads were selected and
simple random sampling techniques to minimize biasness.

3.4 Sample size determination

To determine sample size Yamane (1967) provides a simplified formula to calculate sample sizes
and the level of precision (e) = ± 7% will be assume for Equation.

N
Where
n= 1+ N (e) 2
n is the sample size,

N is the population size

e is the level of precision.

In addition to this, will be going to use proportionate sampling that will be enable us in taking
samples from each sub strata’ which are to be select from the target population.

N = 410+480+615=1505, where, Micha, Boren and Gomatsa respectively

N = the total number of households
N = 1505
e = the margin of error = 7% or 0.07
n= the total sample size of households
1505
n= 1+ 1505(0.07) 2
n =180
Then, I will be to apply proportionate sampling to obtain how many respondents will be select
from each stratum by using formulas: nh = nh (Nh)/N
 Where: nh = Sample size for stratum h

Nh is the numbers of households for stratum h

N is the total numbers of households and n is the total sample size.

 nh1 = 180(410)/1505 = 49
 nh2 =180(480)/ 1505 = 57
 nh3=180(615)/1505 = 74
So that, nh1=49, nh2=57, and nh3 = 74 are the sample size of the strata to the kebele, Micha,
Boren, and Gomatsa respectively.

Table 1: Distribution of Sample Household heads

Sample Kebeles Total number of households of sample
kebele**
Male Female Total sample households
Headed Headed
Micha 200 210 410 49
Boren 250 230 480 57
Gomatsa- (Dega) 300 315 615 74

Total 750 755 1,505 180

3.5. Data collection types and sources
Primary Sources
The primary data was largely collected from sampled rural households in the study area. A
formal survey method was employed using a structured questionnaire. Before starting the actual
data collection, the questionnaire was pre-tested and on the basis of the results obtained, the
necessary modifications were made to the questionnaires. The household heads were asked about
food security and related issues to gather qualitative and quantitative data pertaining to
household demographic characteristics, off-farm/ non-farm income, livestock ownership, types
and amounts of food eaten by the household in a specific period. Other additional data was also
collected including resource endowments, farm technology use, access to credit, accessibility of
farm inputs, attitudinal and other aspects of households including food and non-food
consumption. The primary data was asked where elderly and knowledgeable people about the
area was asked on various issues of the study. Similarly, the copping strategies practiced by
households were also collected at different levels.
Secondary sources
Document review was also the most important data collection instrument. Different published
and unpublished documents, journals, the determinants of food insecurity related workshop
manuals, Brusher, magazines and other key documents which necessary and related to the study
objectives were review to incorporate and enrich the findings of the study.

3.6. Tools of Data Collection

Both primary and secondary data was collected from different sources to identify important
variable that affect household food insecurity. Generate primary data household interview
schedule was asked the respective household direct food insecurity status, the determinants of
household food insecurity, range of coping stratagem practice by food insecurity households.
Secondary data was collected from published and unpublished sources from related to the
subject.

Household Surveys

To generate quantitative information at household level, household survey was undertaken by

developing structured questionnaires. The developed structured questionnaire was translate
into the local language, ‘Amharic’ for the convenience of data collection during household
survey. To achieve the objective of the study. Thus, household survey was conducted by
selecting three development agents as enumerators for each study site and deep discussion was
also held to make the questionnaire clear. Thee numerators was selected from development
agents and teachers working in sample kebeles based on their experience in the area and
communication skills. purpose of the questioner was to collected necessary data from the
sampled population to examine determinants of household food insecurity in JammaWoreda.

The survey was conduct on the selected 180, households. In order to avoid redundancy of
respondent households and make the research valid. Sampled households was selected simple
random sampling techniques.

Key informant interviews (KII

The data was collected from respondents and key informants by employing structured and semi-
structured interviews. The interviews were also be held with the three kebele
administrators, and the head of woreda agriculture office, and the head of
disaster risk management office. The interview was conducted by preparing
interview guides. Key informants was taken purposively according to their nearness to the
food insecurity causes.
Field observations
In addition to the above data collection methods, a field visit was executed to substantiate and
augment the information obtained through other primary and secondary data collection tools.
The biophysical and socioeconomic conditions of the area was explored through the field
observation. In the meantime, experts and administrators in the woreda and kebeles was the
interview body.

3.7 Techniques of data analysis

After completion of fieldwork, the data was coded and entered into Statistical Package for Social
Sciences (SPSS) software for windows version 20. Data for this study was generated through
qualitative and quantitative method. Hence, qualitative and quantitative techniques was used to
analyze data. Information generated from key informant interview, and personal observation was
analyzed qualitatively and the quantitative data generated from household survey was coded and
entered into computer for analysis.

Then, results of data analysis were presented by creating a frequency and percent table format of
variables. In addition, household food insecurity situation of the study area was analyzed by
using livelihood approach in which the analysis was relied on how the households themselves
perceived their household food insecurity situation. Creative statistical analysis was carried
through cross tabulation by frequency and percentage.

Logistic regression analysis was used to analyze relationships between a dichotomous-dependent

variable and independent variables. In this case, multiple independent variables were presented
simultaneously to predict membership of dependent variable which was dichotomous.

Study variables

Dependent variable: household food insecurity was measured by Food Insecurity Access Scale
even though there are many food security measurement tools. Study was employed, the
Household Food Insecurity Access Scale (HFIAS), which is an adaptation of the approach used
to estimate the prevalence of food insecurity in the area. Dependent variable was coded as the
following: Household food security status (0=food secure, 1=food insecure).

Independent variables

Agricultural inputs (improved seeds and fertilizers); have confidence to escape from food
insecurity; Household Size; Educational level of household head; Age of household head’s in
years; Livestock own; Land size; Income of the household head; Access to forest resource;
Access to market; Infrastructure and dependency ratio of the households.

Sex of head of household

Female-headed households can find it difficult than men to gain access to valuable resource,
which helps them to improve production and gain more income, this in turn increases their
probability of being food insecure. Thus, in this study, it was expected to affect extent of
households’ food insecurity negatively.
Age of head of household: It is a continuous variable measured in years. Many studies argued
that young households ‘heads are stronger and energetic than elderly households as they are
expected to cultivate larger-size farm and obtain high yield (Kim, 2014). Hence, in this study age
of the household head was expected to affect extent of food insecurity negatively.

Educational level of head of household: It is a continuous variable measured in years of

schooling of the household head. Education, which is a social capital, has a positive impact on
household ability to take good and well-informed production and nutritional status. Thus, higher
years of schooling was expected to affect extent of food insecurity negatively.

Family size: It is a continuous variable which refers to the number of family members of the
household. Studies argued that larger family size tends to exert more pressure on household’s
consumption than the labor it contributes to production (Stephen and Samuel 2013; Muche et al.
2014). Therefore, in this study, larger household size was expected to affect extent food
insecurity positively.

Number of oxen and donkey owned

It is a continuous variable measured in numbers owned. Oxen and donkey serve as a source of
traction power in many developing countries, thereby significantly affecting household’s crop
production. Animal traction power enables households to cultivate their land; others land through
renting, share cropping, and execute agricultural operations timely that will enhance households’
access to food items (Muche et al. 2014). Accordingly, in this study a greater number of oxen
and donkeys owned by a household was expected to affect the extent of food insecurity
negatively.

Access to irrigation: It is a dummy variable taking the value 1 if the farmers have access to
irrigation and 0, otherwise. Irrigation, as one of the technology options available, enables
smallholder farmers to directly produce consumable food grains and/or diversify their cropping
and supplement moisture deficiency in agriculture so that it helps to increase production and
food consumption (Van der Veen and Tagel, 2011). Thus, in this study, it was expected to have
negative impact on extent of households’ food insecurity.

Access to training: It is a dummy variable that takes value 1 if a household gets access to
agricultural related training and 0, otherwise. Formal agricultural training on modern
technologies (proper types and rates of fertilizer application, improved varieties of seeds, agro-
chemicals, etc.) helps farmers to get better production, and then this most likely leads to obtain
more income to fulfill their family requirements by enhancing their agricultural production skills,
knowledge and experiences (Yishak et al.,2014). Therefore, in this study, it was expected to
affect extent of households’ food insecurity negatively.

Access to credit: It is a dummy variable, which takes the value 1 if the household had access to
credit and 0 otherwise. Availability of credit eases the cash constraints and allows farmers to
purchase inputs such as fertilizer, improved crop varieties, and irrigation facilities; which in turn
enhance food production and ultimately increase household food energy intake (Stephen and
Samuel 2013). In this study, it was expected to affect extent of households’ food insecurity
negatively.

Livestock ownership: It is a continuous variable, which refers to the numbers of livestock

owned by household measured in terms of Tropical Livestock Unit (TLU). The number of
livestock increase, the household expected to have more income sources.

Fertilizer (FER): The inputs used to support and improve the agricultural production and
measured in terms of accessibility as dummy variables taking 1 if access and 0 otherwise.

Pesticide (PES): The inputs used to support and improve the agricultural production and
measured in terms of accessibility as dummy variables taking 1 if access and 0 otherwise
Dependency Ratio (DER): dependency ratio is defined as the number of persons in a
population who are not economically active. It is a discrete variable measured the ratio of
persons in the dependent age groups to those of the working ages provides a useful
approximation to population dependency burden. The members of family below 15 years and
above 65years’ age. The housed family members unable to participate in agricultural and
nonagricultural activities measured in number as continues variable. Expected to have inverse
relationship as dependency increase the tendency to increase income diversification decreased
due to the fact that unproductive labor exists and unable to participate in income diversification
activities

Farm land size: Is a continuous variable and measured in terms of hectares. Farm land Size is
an important determinant of household food security and it is the total area of land cultivated to
food and cash crop by households, measured in hectares (Birara et al, 2014). Farm land size
plays an important role in food security as it enables the households to cultivate their land and
have enough farm products that can feed the whole family members

Table 2: expected sign of independent variable

nature of expected
Variables Value
variables sign
Age of the household head Continuous actual age in years +ve/-ve
Sex of the household head Dummy 1 if male o if female +ve/-ve
Marital status of household head Dummy 1 married, 0 unmarried +ve
Family Size of household head Continuous household size +ve/-ve
Number of Dependent family Number of dependent
Continuous -ve
members family
Level of education Continuous years of schooling +ve
Training service Dummy 1 If access 0 otherwise +ve
Distance to Town Continuous average k.m +ve/-ve
distance to market Continuous walk-in hours +ve/-ve
Access to information/having
Dummy 1 if access, 0 otherwise +ve
mobile, radio
Farm size Continuous hectares +ve/-ve
Livestock size Continuous TLU +ve
Membership in agricultural
Dummy 1 if yes, 0 otherwise +ve
cooperatives
Irrigation Dummy IRR +ve
Extension contact Continuous frequency +ve
amount of credit received Continuous Birr +ve
access to Irrigation Dummy 1 if access if not 0 +ve
Access to information Dummy 1 if access if not 0 +ve
Use agricultural input/Fertilizer
Continuous 1 if access if not 0 +ve/-ve
seeds
Use agricultural input/Improved Continuous 1 if access if not 0 +ve/-v
 seeds

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