Food Access Indicators ENCAP TRAINING Bangkok January 2009

Objectives Review food access indicators Share experiences

Food and Nutrition Security Conceptual Framework We cannot measure food security directly. It is a function of: food availability food access food utilization

Definitions & Key Concepts Food access: physical & economical ability of a household to acquire adequate amounts of food. Households have access to food supplies through a variety of livelihood strategies: i.own production (e.g., harvest) ii.market purchases iii.transfers from other sources (e.g., remittances, food aid, gifts, credit, bartering, etc.)

Even though “food access” is easier to observe than “food security”, still it is a difficult concept to measure In fact… Key Concepts

…The way the households access food: depends on household livelihood activities is context-specific (e.g., new challenges in urban contexts) challenging to prescribe ‘a priori’ food access indicators valid for each analysis (each country, each livelihood group). + It is not advisable to use JUST one FOOD ACCESS indicator therefore

From HH questionnaire several questions related to access…

The actual current household food consumption depends upon the ability to acquire adequate amount of food. Food consumption (FCS) is therefore a proxy of food access (and food security). oHouseholds with low FCS are likely to have difficulties in acquiring adequate amount of food (i.e., poor food access). Otherwise they would eat more! Current Food Consumption

Sources of food Questions on sources of food consumed during the 7 days before the assessment play a crucial role in assessing the ability of the household to acquire adequate amount of food. oHousehold’s food access is poor if the HH has high dependency on food aid, gifts, or tends to buy food on credit othe relative contribution of each source (% of food from own production, purchase, etc.) suggests what are the other access indicators to consider.

Ex: would you look at “production-related indicators” in a situation where the vast majority of the households acquire food through purchase? (Source: Liberia, Greater Monrovia, 2009) Sources of food (cont’d)

Expenditures Expenditures are useful as a proxy for wider purchasing power, which is another important component of food access. oHouseholds that: i.devote most of the expenditures to buy food ii.have low per capita total expenditures iii.have debts (especially to satisfy basic needs) are likely to have difficulties in acquiring adequate amount of food (i.e., poor food access).  Consider the context!! (e.g., urban vs rural, etc.)

Total Income (If what is produced for auto-consumption is considered in the estimation of total income), total income can be used as a proxy of purchasing power – which is, in turn, a component of food access. oIt is likely that households with higher total income have higher capability to acquire adequate food compared with the poor households.

Wealth Wealth should be included while analysing household access to food. It gives an idea of the coping potential of the households. oIt is likely that rich households have higher capability to acquire adequate food compared with the poor households. oRich households can cope better to shocks compared with poor households

Type of livelihood activities Likewise some food sources, some livelihood activities help understanding the level of sustainability of the current food consumption. oHousehold’s ability to acquire food is poor if the HH has high dependency on gifts, support from neighbours, casual labour, etc.  Consider the context while evaluating the type of income sources!!

Crop Production Crop production-related indicators can be crucial in evaluating food access of households that rely mainly on agriculture (farmers): oFarmers i.with scarce amount food stock, ii.with a bad harvest, iii.whose production does not satisfy HH food needs are likely to have difficulties in acquiring adequate amount of food (i.e., poor food access).

Choosing food access indicators There is no golden rule, but basic recommendations: Do not rely only on one food access indicator. Use more food access indicators Consider the survey context and livelihood activities in order to choose the most appropriate indicators. Results from the “main sources of food” can suggest appropriate food access indicators

What do we do with these indicators?

Using Food Access Indicators Food Access Indicators can be used to complement/enrich the Food Security classification from the FC groups. This is particularly important if: The FCS is not a sufficient indicator of household FS in the local context (e.g., no convergence of evidence, food aid recipients) Substantial changes in food access will take place across the population in the short run (e.g., as a result of a recent shock).

Example: looking at food sources –10% poor food security –25% borderline food security Or: –10% poor food security –25% borderline, including 8% receiving food aid –15% with acceptable food consumption but who also receive food aid

Example: considering livelihood 15% of the farmers have poor consumption, 15% borderline consumption, 70% acceptable consumption… …however, 5% have a borderline consumption AND bad production. They face a more instable food security situation compared with the 10% borderline that produce well.

Profiling the food insecure ENCAP TRAINING Bangkok January 2009

Once the food consumption groups are identified, it is important to explore the socio-economical characteristics of the food insecure Who are they? Profiling the food insecure

Demographic factors

Economic factors

Assets

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