Dietary diversity status of rural households in Nigeria: A gendered perspective

Journal title ECONOMIA AGRO-ALIMENTARE
Author/s Oluwakemi Adeola Obayelu, Olusayo Olubisi Idowu
Publishing Year 2020 Issue 2019/3
Language English Pages 24 P. 613-636 File size 301 KB
DOI 10.3280/ECAG2019-003003
DOI is like a bar code for intellectual property: to have more infomation click here

Below, you can see the article first page

If you want to buy this article in PDF format, you can do it, following the instructions to buy download credits

Article preview

FrancoAngeli is member of Publishers International Linking Association, Inc (PILA), a not-for-profit association which run the CrossRef service enabling links to and from online scholarly content.

Evidence of upsurge in food insecurity incidence and its vulnerability of households in both rural and urban areas in Nigeria has led to enquiries about the richness of available food baskets and evenness of their consumption. The objective of this study was to examine the dietary diversity among rural households in Nigeria from a gender perspective. Data from the Living Standard Measurement Survey- Integrated Survey on Agriculture (lsms-isa) 2016 were analysed using Simpson Diversity Index, Cross tabulation and Oaxaca-Blinder decomposition. Most of the rural households were male-headed (85%) with an average age of 53 years old and had household size of 8 persons. Dietary diversity score was slightly higher in female-headed households than among their male counterparts. Fish and seafood had the highest food share expenditure among female-headed households while cereals had the highest in male-headed households. Low dietary diversity was predominant among households where the head was 31 to 40 years old male with at least 16 members, while the high dietary diversity was highest among households with 51 to 60 years old female heads and 11 to 15 members. Difference in mean of aggregate dietary diversity between male- and female-headed households revealed a gap of 0.0155 in favour of the female-headed households. There were significant gender differences in household endowments such as household size, income, tangible assets owned and farm size, which explained dietary diversity among rural households in Nigeria.

Keywords: Dietary diversity, Simpson Index, gender, rural Nigeria.

Jel codes: D13, D14, J16

  1. Adeoye, O.A. (2017). Effect of Crop Diversification, Dietary Diversity on Children Nutritional Outcomes in Rural Nigeria. Unpublished Masters dissertation submitted to the Department of Agricultural Economics, University of Ibadan.
  2. Adepoju, A.O. & Adejare, K.A. (2013). Food Insecurity Status of Rural Households during the Post-Planting Season in Nigeria. Journal of Agriculture and Sustainability, 4(1), 16-35.
  3. Akerele, D. & Odeniyi, K.A. (2015). Demand for Diverse Diet: Evidence from Nigeria. Paper Prepared for Presentation at the 89th Annual Conference of the Agricultural Economics Society, University of Warwick, United Kingdom, 13-15th April, 2015.
  4. Ajani, S.R. (2010). An Assessment of Dietary Diversity in Six Nigerian States. African Journal of Biomedical Research, 13, 161-167.
  5. Amugsi, D.A., Lartey, A., Kimani-Murage, E. & Mberu, B.U. (2016). Women’s Participation in Household Decision-Making and Higher Dietary Diversity: Findings from Nationally Representative Data from Ghana. Journal of Health, Population and Nutrition, 35, 16.
  6. Ayenew, H.Y., Biadgilign, S. Schickramm, L., Abate-Kassa, G. & Sauer, J. (2018). Production Diversification, Dietary Diversity and Consumption Seasonality: panel data evidence from Nigeria. BMC Public Health, 18, 988.
  7. Berry, C.H. (1971). Corporate Growth and Diversification. Journal of Law Economics, 14, 371-383.
  8. Blinder, A.S. (1973). Wage Discrimination: Reduced Form and Structural Estimates. Journal of Human Resources, 8, 436-455.
  9. Das, M. (2014). Measures, Spatial Profile and Determinants of Dietary Diversity: Evidence from India. Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research, Working Paper WP-2014-045. Mumbai November 2014 -- www.igidr.ac.in/pdf/publication/WP-2014-045.pdf.
  10. Drescher, L.S., Thiele, S. & Mensink, G.B.M. (2007) A New Index to Measure Healthy Food Diversity Better Reflects a Healthy Diet than Traditional Measures. The Journal of Nutrition, 137(3), 647-651.
  11. Fanzo, J. (2012). The Nutrition Challenge in sub-Saharan Africa. United Nations Development Programme Regional Bureau for Africa Working Paper WP 2012-012: January 2012. -- www.undp.org/content/dam/rba/docs/Working%20Papers/Nutrition%20Challenge.pdf.
  12. fao (2011). Guidelines for Measuring Household and Individual Dietary Diversity. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (fao), Rome, Italy. -- www.fao.org/fileadmin/…/FAO-guidelines-dietary-diversity2011.pdf.
  13. fao (2013). The State of Food Insecurity in the World 2013. -- Retrieved on 1 May, 2019 from: www.fao.org/3/i3434e/i3434e06.pdf.
  14. fao (2016). Nigeria Food Security and Vulnerability Survey Report. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, fao Representation in Nigeria.
  15. fao (2018). The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World. -- Retrieved on 1 May, 2019 from: www.fao.org/state-of-food-security-nutrition/en/.fao/ifad/unicef/wfp/who (2018). The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World: Building Climate Resilience for Food Security and Nutrition. Food and Agriculture Organisation, Rome, Italy. -- Downloaded on 11 October, 2018 from www.fao.org/3/I9553EN/i9553en.pdf.
  16. giz (2013). Gender and Food and Nutrition Security. Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (giz) GmbH of the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (bmz).
  17. Herfindahl, O.C. (1950). Concentration in the U.S. Steel Industry. New York: Colombia University Press.
  18. Hirschman, A.O. (1945). National Power and the Structure of Foreign Trade. Publications of the Bureau of Business and Economic Research. Berkeley: University of California Press.
  19. Hillbrunner, C. & Egan, R. (2008). Seasonality, Household Food Security and Nutritional Status in Dinajpur, Bangladesh. Food and Nutrition Bulletin, 29(3), 221-231.
  20. Hoddinott, J., & Yohannes, Y. (2002). Dietary Diversity as a Food Security Indicator. Food Consumption and Nutrition Division Discussion Paper 136.
  21. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute.
  22. ifpri (2012). Nigeria Food Security Situation. Food Security Portal -- available at www.food securityportal.org/nigeria/resources.
  23. ifpri (2016). 2016 Global Food Policy Report. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute.
  24. Karamba, W.R., Quinones, E.J., & Winters, P. (2011). Migration and Food Consumption Patterns in Ghana. Food policy, 36(1), 41-53. Kendall, A., Olson, C.M. & Frongillo E.A. (1996). Relationship of Hunger and Food Insecurity to Food Availability and Consumption. Journal of American Dietary Association, 96(10), 1019-1024.
  25. Kennedy, G.L., Pedro, M.R., Seghieri, C., Nantel, G. & Brouwer, I. (2007).
  26. Dietary Diversity Score is a Useful Indicator of Micronutrient Intake in Non-Breastfeeding Filipino Children. Journal of Nutrition, 137(2), 472-477.
  27. Kiboi, W., Judith, K. & Peter, C. (2017). Determinants of Dietary Diversity among Pregnant Women in Laikipia County, Kenya: a cross-sectional study. Bmc Nutrition, 3(12).
  28. Kumar, A., Sunil S., Singh, R.K.P. & Shiv, J. (2016). Agricultural Diversity, Dietary Diversity and Nutritional Intake: An Evidence on Inter-linkages from Village Level Studies (vls) in Eastern India. Agricultural Economics Research Review, 29(Conf.), 15-31.
  29. Kumar, A., Thapa, G. & Joshi, P.K. (2017). Food Expenditure Patterns and Dietary Diversity in Nepal: Is dietary quality improving? ifpri Discussion Paper 01670; August 2017 (pp. 12-64).
  30. Larson, J.B., Castellanos, P. & Jensen, L. 2019. Gender, Household Food Security and Dietary Diversity in Western Honduras. Global Food Security, 20(March), 170-179.
  31. Mazumdar, S., Shukla, S.K., & Kumar, A. (2014). Ethnic Disparities in Food Consumption and Household Nutrition Outcomes in India. Conference paper: Annual Meeting of the Population Association of America (paa), at Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America. Population Health & Nutrition Research Programme (PHN-RP), Institute for Human Development, New Delhi, pp. 1-20.
  32. Metu, A.G., Okeyinka, K.O. & Maduka, O.D. (2016). Achieving Sustainable Food Security in Nigeria: Challenges and Way Forward. 3rd International Conference on African Development Issues (CU-ICADI 2016). Covenant University Press (pp. 182-187).
  33. Nguyen, M.C. & Winters, P. (2011). The Impact of Migration on Food Consumption Patterns: The Case of Vietnam. Food policy, 36(1), 71-87.
  34. npc (2018). National Population Commision. Retrieved on 11 October, 2018 – from http://population.gov.ng/nigerias-population-hit-198m-people-npopc-chairman/.
  35. Oaxaca, R. (1973). Male-Female Wage Differentials in Urban Labor Markets. International Economic Review, 14(3), 693-709.
  36. Obayelu, O.A. & Awoyemi, T.T. (2010). Spatial Dimension of Poverty in Rural Nigeria. Journal of Development and Agricultural Economics, 2(6), 231-244.
  37. Ochieng, J., Afari-Sefa, V., Lukumay, P.J. & Dubois, T. (2017). Determinants of Dietary Diversity and the Potential Role of Men in Improving Household Nutrition in Tanzania. PLoS One, 12(12), e0189022.
  38. Olomola, A.S. (2014). The Political Economy of Food Price Policy in Nigeria in Food Price Policy in an Era of Market Instability: A Political Economy Analysis. In P. Pinstrup-Andersen (Ed.), Oxford Scholarship online. -- www.oxfordscholarship.com/view/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198718574.001.0001/acprof-9780198718574-chapter-13?print=pdf.
  39. Olomola, A.S & Nwafor, M. (2018). Nigeria Agriculture Sector Performance Review. A Background Report for the Nigeria 2017 Agriculture Joint Sector Review. -- https://fscluster.org/sites/default/files/documents/nigeria_agric_sector_review_report_august_2018.pdf.
  40. Onyango, A., Koski, K.G. & Tucker, K.L. (1998). Food Diversity Versus Breastfeeding Choice in Determining Anthropometric Status in Rural Kenyan Toddlers. International Journal of Epidemiology, 27, 484-489.
  41. Otto, M.C., Padhye, N.S., Bertoni, A.G., Jacobs, D.R. & Mozaffarian, D. (2015). Everything in Moderation: Dietary Diversity and Quality, Central Obesity and Risk of Diabetes. PLoS One, (10):e0141341.
  42. Rashid, D.A., Smith, L. & Rahman, T. (2006). Determinants of Dietary Quality: Evidence from Bangladesh. American Agricultural Economics Association Annual Meeting, 2006 July 23-26; Long Beach, CA, -- available at: http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/bitstream/21326/1/sp06ra11.pdf.
  43. Ruel, M.T. (2002). Is Dietary Diversity an Indicator of Food Security or Dietary Quality? A Review of Measurement Issues and Research Needs. fcnd Discussion Paper No. 140, Food Consumption and Nutrition Division of the International Food Policy Research Institute, Washington, D.C.
  44. Ruel, M.T. (2003). Diet Quality and Diet Changes of the Poor: A Global Research Program to Improve Dietary Quality, Health and Nutrition. A proposal for a Global Research Program (GRP24). Washington DC: ifpri.
  45. Sarkar, S. (2014). Households Dietary Diversity: A Study of Rural Households in West Bengal, India. European Academic Research, 2(6), 8307-8325.
  46. Simpson, E. (1949). Measurement of Diversity. Nature, 163, 688.
  47. Sharma, A. & Chandrasekhar, S. (2016). Impact of Commuting by Workers on Household dietary diversity in Rural India. Food Policy, 59(C), 34-43.
  48. Steyn, N.P., Nel, J.H., Nantel, G., Kennedy, G. & Labadarios, D. (2006). Food Variety and Dietary Diversity Scores in Children: Are they Good Indicators of Dietary Adequacy? Public Health Nutrition, 9(5), 644-650.
  49. Tanankem, B.V., Efobi, U.R. & Atata, N.S. (2016). Women Empowerment and Intra-household Dietary Diversity in Nigeria. agdi Working Paper WP/16/050. -- Retreived on 24 September, 2019 from file:///C:/Users/Dell/Downloads/Women-Empowerment-and-Intra-household-Dietary-Diversity-in-Nigeria.pdf.
  50. Taruvinga, A., Muchenje, V. & Mushunje, A. (2013). Determinants of Rural Household Dietary Diversity: The case of Amatole and Nyandeni Districts, South Africa. International Journal of Development and Sustainability, 2(4), 2233-2247.
  51. Thapa, G., Kumar, A. & Joshi, P. K. (2017). Household Food Expenditure, Dietary Diversity, and Child Nutrition in Nepal. ifpri Discussion Paper 01674; August 2017, pp. 10-64.
  52. Tlhorne-Lyman, A., Valpiani, N., Sun, K., Semba, R.D., Klotz, C.L., Kraemer, K., Akhter, N., de Pee, S., Moench-Pfanner, R., Sari, M. & Bloem, M.W. (2010).
  53. Household Dietary Diversity and Food Expenditures are Closely Linked in Rural Bangladesh: Increasing the Risk of Malnutrition Due to the Financial Crisis. The Journal of Nutrition, 140(1),1 82S-188S.
  54. US Department of Agriculture and US Department of Health and Human Services. 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. 2015. -- https://health.gov/dietaryguidelines/2015/.
  55. United States Department of Agriculture 2015. Household Food Security in the United States in 2015. Economic Research Service. -- www.ers.usda.gov/webdocs/publications/79761/err-215.pdf?v=0.
  56. Welthungerhilfe/International Food Policy Research Institute/Concern Worldwide2014. 2014 Global Hunger Index: The Challenge of Hidden Hunger. -- http://ebrary.ifpri.org/utils/getfile/collection/p15738coll2/id/128360/filename/128571.pdf.
  57. World Food Programme 2015. Food Insecurity and Undernutrition in the Urban Slums of Bangladesh: A 2013 survey of slum households in Dhaka, Barisal and Sirajganj. World Food Programme 156pp.

  • Developing Sustainable Food Systems, Policies, and Securities Oluwakemi Adeola Obayelu, Rebecca Funmi Akinmulewo, pp.197 (ISBN:9781799825999)
  • A review of gender in agricultural and pastoral livelihoods based on selected countries in west and east Africa Katharine Vincent, in Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems 908018/2022
    DOI: 10.3389/fsufs.2022.908018
  • Unlocking gender dynamics in food and nutrition security in Ghana: assessing dietary diversity, food security, and crop diversification among cocoa household heads in the Juaboso-Bia cocoa landscape Michael Batame, in BMC Public Health 985/2024
    DOI: 10.1186/s12889-024-18204-7

Oluwakemi Adeola Obayelu, Olusayo Olubisi Idowu, Dietary diversity status of rural households in Nigeria: A gendered perspective in "ECONOMIA AGRO-ALIMENTARE" 3/2019, pp 613-636, DOI: 10.3280/ECAG2019-003003