Chronic food insecurity still a major issue: study

More than a quarter of the 3.86 crore population in 18 northern and southern districts suffers from chronic food insecurity, compounded by poverty, poor sanitation, low levels of education and natural disasters, according to a study released this week.

Some 27 percent of those people were chronically deprived of proper nutrition, says the Chronic Food Insecurity Situation Overview in Bangladesh, jointly launched by the government's Food Planning and Monitoring Unit and the Food and Agriculture Organisation. 

About 9 percent of the chronically deprived, or 35.5 lakh people, are said to suffer from 'severe chronic food insecurity', the report said.

The affected people consume inadequate quantities of food for more than two months of the year, consume poor diet and have moderate to severely malnourished children. 

A larger proportion of the persistently deprived people live in the northern districts, and Kurigram was found to be the most affected, but the incidence of insecurity was significant in Gaibandha, Lalmonirhat, Jamalpur, Sirajganj, Rangpur, Jhalakathi, Pirojpur and Patuakhali as well, according to the report.

Most of the chronically hungry are those who depend on low-valued livelihoods: marginal farmers, agriculture wage labourers and marginal fishermen.

Poverty in these districts is higher than the national average, and 40 percent of households do not have access to proper sanitation.  

Low-valued livelihoods and high poverty rates constrain the purchasing capacity of the households in areas with higher levels of chronic food insecurity, the report found.

Additionally, low levels of literacy also increase dependence on livelihoods with low financial returns and lead to poor knowledge on nutrition and poor hygiene practices. 

A high stunting rate in children under five and insufficient diversity in women's diet are also areas of concern in all the 18 districts studied, with a higher level of prevalence in the northern districts, the study revealed.

Both long- and short-term initiatives to increase employment diversity, and economically empower the vulnerable through better physical communication, education, dissemination of information through media campaigns on nutrition, health, and hygiene are imperative to tackling the issue, the report said.  “These programmes need to be integrated with the local agricultural production and functional value chain.”