Background: The issue of food insecurity has emerged as an urgent
concern and a top priority in developed and developing countries. Rural
households are currently grappling with food insecurity and malnutrition due to
various factors. These factors include droughts, floods, poor farming
practices, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, high food prices, and the
Russia-Ukraine war. Despite the global issue of food insecurity, there is a
lack of information on the status of food insecurity at the household level in
rural areas of Lesotho.
Aim: This study sought to assess food insecurity and its determinants
among rural households in the Southern region of Lesotho, specifically in the
Quthing, Mohale’s Hoek, and Mafeteng districts.
Methods: A community quantitative cross-sectional study was
conducted, and interview schedules were administered to a sample of three
hundred (n=300) rural households. Primary data for this study were obtained
from rural households using a validated survey instrument. The study found a
large proportion of rural households (95.3%, n=286) to be food insecure, as
measured by the Household Food Insecurity Access Scale (HFIAS). Predictors of
household food insecurity were determined using multiple regression analysis.
The descriptive analysis method was used to describe data collected from sample
households.
Results: The regression analysis revealed that the number of
children in a household (ß=.139,t=2.450, CI=.022, .198, p<0.05), marital
status of the household head (ß=-.119,t=-2.110, CI=-.144, -.005, p<0.05),
Land availability (ß=.252,t=3.079, CI=.123, .560, p<0.05), and Borrowing money
from informal money lenders (ß=.153,t=2.227, CI=024, .389, p<0.05)were
significant predictors of household food insecurity in the studied regions at
p< 0.05 significance. The result indicated that 4.6% of the households in
Mafeteng, Quthing, and Mohale’s Hoek were food secure, and 95.3% were food
insecure.
Conclusions and Recommendations: Given the high prevalence of food
insecurity in rural households, the study suggests that understanding the
determinants of food insecurity is essential to combating the issue. Local
authorities should prioritize eradicating hunger by implementing practical and
sustainable policies to effectively reduce household food insecurity.
Author
(s) Details
Mamakase Grace Sello
Department of Nutrition, National University of Lesotho, Maseru, Lesotho.
Mahalieo Flora
Motanyane
Department of Nutrition, National University of Lesotho, Maseru, Lesotho.
Nthabiseng Anna
Mokhesi
Department of Nutrition, National University of Lesotho, Maseru, Lesotho.
Relebohile Ntsieane
Department of
Nutrition, National University of Lesotho, Maseru, Lesotho.
Nthabiseng Anna
Mokhesi
Department of
Nutrition, National University of Lesotho, Maseru, Lesotho.
Please see the book
here:- https://doi.org/10.9734/bpi/cpafs/v9/1827
