Abstract
Food insecurity is an important and persistent social issue in Bangladesh. Existing data based on socio-economic surveys produce divisional and nationally representative food insecurity estimates but these surveys cannot be used directly to generate reliable district level estimates. We deliberate small area estimation (SAE) approach for estimating the food insecurity status at district level in Bangladesh by combining Household Income and Expenditure Survey 2010 with the Bangladesh Population and Housing Census 2011. The food insecurity prevalence, gap and severity status have been determined based on per capita calorie intake with a threshold of 2122 kcal per day, as specified by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics.The results show that the food insecurity estimates generated from SAE are precise and representative of the spatial heterogeneity in the socioeconomic conditions than do the direct estimates. The maps showing the food insecurity indicators by district indicate that a number of districts in northern and southern parts are more vulnerable in terms of all indicators. These maps will guide the government, international organizations, policymakers and development partners for efficient resource allocation.
Highlights
Achieving food security for all remains one of the major development goals throughout the world
The district level estimates of three food insecurity indicators namely food insecurity prevalence (FIP), Food insecurity gap (FIG), and Food insecurity severity (FIS) are generated from the Empirical Best Prediction (EBP) method under BHF model (4) with 23 significant covariates
From the results presented in S1–S3 Appendices and shown in Fig 3, it is evident that the coefficient of variation (CV) of the direct estimates are slightly higher and the estimates are unreliable
Summary
Achieving food security for all remains one of the major development goals throughout the world. Food security exists when all people, at all times, have physical and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life as described by Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations [1]. Food insecurity exists when people do not have adequate physical, social or economic access to food. The food security is one of the highest priorities of the Government of Bangladesh to achieve the second Sustainable Development Goal (SDG 2). The food security situation in Bangladesh has improved during the last few decades, growing inequality among lower administrative boundary levels is a serious concern. Policy interventions and foreign aids are more likely to be effective in reducing spatial inequality of food
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