Spillover effect of violent conflicts on food insecurity in sub-Saharan Africa

Abstract

We examine violent conflict's spillover effects on food insecurity in Uganda, Ethiopia, and Malawi. Using a contiguity matrix weighted on the distance between housing units and data from the Living Standard Measurement Survey, we find a statistically significant spillover effect of violent conflict on food security in Ethiopia and Uganda. Statistically significant indirect effects of violent conflict on food security were negative within Malawi and positive within Ethiopia. Direct and spillover effects of violent conflicts and other covariates on food security are also analyzed.