Tackling Food and Nutrition Insecurity among Rural Inhabitants: Role of Household-Level Strategies with a Focus on Value Addition, Diversification and Female Participation

Abstract

Ensuring food and nutrition security (FNS) is a formidable challenge under increasing population pressure. Governments around the globe have been striving to achieve this goal, but a major impact is attainable once the masses opt for measures at the household level. We conducted this study to explore household-level practices aimed at ensuring FNS and their association with FNS in rural Pakistan. Using cluster analysis, we divided a sample of 200 randomly selected rural households into high and low FNS groups, the majority of which belonged to the low FNS group. Logistic regression was applied to explore the association between household-level measures with the FNS of rural households. The households in the high FNS group adopted a greater number of measures for ensuring FNS. Households headed jointly by a male and female showed to have a higher likelihood of FNS. Similarly, households adopting diversification strategies on their farms were more likely to have high FNS. Moreover, households with working women exhibited a greater probability of experiencing high FNS. Similarly, households’ adoption of value addition in dairy products decreases the probability of food and nutrition insecurity. This study concludes with an emphasis on women’s empowerment, off-farm income diversification, and on-farm enterprise diversification to address FNS challenges.

Keywords

• food security
• nutrition security
• rural household
• livelihood
• accessibility