A THESIS SUBMITTED TO DEPARTMENT OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT AND AGRICULTURAL EXTENSION SCHOOL OF GRADUATE STUDIES, ARBA MINCH UNIVERSITY

Abstract

Although a number of efforts have been done to achieve food security at the household level in the rural areas of Ethiopia, it has remained as a challenging goal even today. Thus, having clear picture on food security status and its major determinants helps policy makers and planners to devise new policies that enhance food security. Therefore, this study was conducted to measure the status of rural household food security in Boloso Sore Woreda. The household data were collected from systematically selected 204 respondents in three rural kebeles using structured questionnaire. In addition, focus group discussion and key informant interviews were used. The data were analyzed using mean, percentages and frequency. T-test and Chi-square test were used to describe the socio-economic, institutional and demographic characteristics of food-secure and insecure households. Binary logistic regressions model was applied to identify important determinants of rural household food security in the study area. Household one day food consumption was used to measure the status household food security. The survey result shows that 33.8 % of sample households were food secure and 66.2 % of household was food insecure. The logistic model was initially fitted with 13 variables of which 7 were found to have significance effect on the household food security. These were age of household head, sex of household, education level of household head, cultivated land size of households, improved seed use, use of credit, and oxen ownership. Coping strategies which were practiced by sample households at both initial and sever stages of food shortage were reducing number of meal, reducing size of meal, borrowing cash and grain and work for food program, sales of animals, participating in food for work programs, off-farm and non-farm jobs, rent out land and sale of faire wood. The study recommends that proactive policy in strengthening extension support, incorporating coping strategy in the government regular projects and programs, promoting land intensive and conservation agriculture should be integrated as food security efforts of the government