RURAL HOUSEHOLD FOOD INSECURITY STATUS AND COPING STRATEGIES IN DAMOT WOYDE WOREDA OF WOLAITA ZONE, SOUTHERN ETHIOPIA

ABSTRACT Food insecurity exists when people lack access to sufficient amount of safe food and key policy challenges. Due to these reason understanding the determinants with surviving strategy is important for interferences aiming at regulating it. Hence, this study conducted to state the determinants of rural household food insecurity and ascertain households coping strategies. For this primary and secondary sources were collected in the study area. The study drew 121 rural households through three stage sampling technique from four kebeles of the woreda based on agro-ecology; data gathered randomly using probability proportional to size. The survey data were analyzed by using descriptive and econometric methods. Binary Logit regression model were used to achieve the existing food insecurity status and determinants of it. The results from descriptive statistics show that of the total surveyed households, 59.5% and 40.5% were food insecure and secure respectively. The majority of the respondents viz. more than 58% and about 62% have no enough physical and economic availability and accessibility of food throughout the year respectively. The model results show that six variables were significant determinants of household food insecurity. These were sex of household head, age of household head, family size, education level of household head, cultivated land size and use of chemical fertilizer. Furthermore, rural households also used different coping strategies to against food deficit at initial and sever stage but the most common are ate less prepared food, borrowing grain (cash), reducing number and size of meals and sale of firewood/ charcoal or grass. Moreover, the results suggest that more attention should be given to older age households in food security projects, increasing family size creating awareness on family planning, agricultural sector should be given close attention to farmers providing and using recommended rate on time to the chemical fertilizer. Also attention should be given to pest and disease through providing necessary remedies. Therefore, based on the findings of this study, stakeholders should focus on the rural household food insecurity situation and coping strategies to better serve at any direction in the study area.