A multi-country assessment of factors related to smallholder food security in varying rainfall conditions.

ABSTRACT: Given that smallholder farmers are frequently food insecure and rely significantly on rain-fed agriculture, it is critical to examine climate variability and food insecurity. We utilize data from smallholder farmer surveys from 12 countries with 30 years of rainfall data to examine how rainfall variability and household resources are correlated with food security. We find that on average, households that experienced a drier than average year are 3.81 months food insecure, while households within a normal range of rainfall were 3.67 months food insecure, and wetter than average households were 2.86 months food insecure. Reduced odds of food insecurity is associated with agricultural inputs, ownership of livestock, water use efficiency, financial services, and participation in a group. Howev

SUBMITTER: Niles MT 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5701123 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature