Determining the contribution of agricultural production to household nutritional status in KwaZulu‐Natal, South Africa1

Abstract

Strategies for alleviating nutritional deficiencies in households have been a topic of continued debate in academic and political discussion. A common argument, in the case of rural households, is that an increase in food production could improve household nutrition, and this reasoning has been used to motivate programmes aimed at improving agricultural productivity in less-developed and poverty-stricken areas. In the former homeland areas of South Africa households are highly susceptible to malnutrition and programmes for improving agricultural productivity have been implemented. The region's poverty and low agricultural production justified the focus on agriculture. Farmers in these areas have been excluded (almost exclusively) from the mainstream agricultural sector, and agricultural development programmes have had limited success in bringing about the required increase in agricultural productivity. This has led to a change in the nature of development programmes by increasingly focusing on improved access to inputs, markets and other agricultural services for empowering farmers to improve their agricultural productivity. Several studies were commissioned to evaluate the success of these programmes in different regions (Kirsten et al, 1993; Lyne & Ortmann, 1992). Mixed results were reported but, in general, improved availability of inputs (seeds and fertilisers), access to credit, and extension and training services led to a sharp rise in yields and productivity in many regions (Kirsten, 1994; Chikanda & Kirsten, 1996; Van Rooyen & Nene, 1996; Lyne & Ortmann, 1992). The link between this increased productivity and reduced malnutrition was, however, never firmly established.