Analysing The Determinants Of Food Deprivation In Zambézia Province, Mozambique

Abstract

Food deprivation is one of the least investigated manifestations of food insecurity. It refers to the condition of people whose food consumption is continually lower than their needs. The FAO measure of food deprivation refers to the proportion of the population whose food energy consumption is less than minimum energy needs. After years of decline, hunger, vulnerability to food and nutritional insecurity and the number of malnourished individuals have increased again. The causes of food insecurity are diverse and interconnected. This study analyzes the determinants of food deprivation in the province of Zambézia, using cross-sectional data extracted from a conglomerate sample of 566 households obtained through semi-structured interviews, as part of the evaluation of the payment for environmental services project planned by FAO and the University of Zambezi in 2022, whose questionnaire captures information on food security. It was reported that respondents suffered from food deprivation if they stated that they ate less than they thought, even if they did not miss a meal (because the family did not have money or other resources to obtain food). The Logit and Probit models were adopted and estimated to verify the consistency of the factors. Additionally, bivariate analyzes and descriptive statistics were derived. The existence of other sources of income in the AF and the sale of agricultural surpluses determined food deprivation. The probabilities of food deprivation are greater for households that sell agricultural surpluses and those where at least one elderly person lives together and decrease in those where the head of the household has more than one source of income. The highest prevalence of food deprivation occurred in the districts of Gilé, Maganja da Costa and Mocubela, with the lowest prevalence found in the district of Mulevala. Policies that promote income diversification in rural areas and the dissemination of surplus conservation techniques and technologies must be prioritized to reduce the prevalence of food deprivation.