Determinants of Household Nutrition Security in Countries in Protracted Crisis: Evidence from South Sudan

Abstract

Undernutrition is a considerable challenge in sub-Saharan Africa, especially in countries affected by a protracted crisis, but the literature lacks information on the underlying mechanisms influencing micro- and macronutrients, and appropriate analytical tools are needed to assist policymakers and implementers. The paper contributes to filling this gap, focusing on the Western Bahr el Ghazal state in South Sudan and using primary data collected in May–June 2019 for a statistically representative sample of households. The literature typically uses one micro- or macronutrient as a proxy of nutritional status. On the contrary, the study applied a MANCOVA with an artificial dependent variable, including protein, vitamin A, and heme iron, in a single experiment to discover the variables that better explain household nutritional status. Dietary diversity explains the largest proportion of variance in household nutritional status. The importance of the variables in explaining the variance in the specific micro- and macronutrients depends on the explanatory variable. Therefore, the results suggest the possible misinterpretation of undernutrition using one nutrient. Moreover, they highlight the importance of a multisectoral approach to the problem with a central role played by agriculture and the urgency of the reinforcement of the humanitarian–development–peace nexus to improve household nutrition security in South Sudan.