Household determinants of food security in rural Central Uganda

Abstract

Food security is at the center stage in the world’s economic development debate. This concern is due to the fact that the world’s population is increasing very fast and is expected to reach 9.8 billion by the year 2050 (DESA, 2017). This will increase pressures on the environment, global food supplies and energy resources. In her article, “Food Insecurity and Food Stamp Program”, Jensen (2002) reports that, in the face of abundant supplies of food worldwide, nearly 800 million people suffered from malnutrition and undernourishment. Most of these undernourished live in low income countries. According to 2014 national population and housing census (UNHS) results, annual population growth rate between 2002 and 2014 censuses was 3.03% (UBOS, 2018). This rapid population growth will lead to acute land constraints and accelerated land degradation if not controlled. Land degradation due to deforestation, and the rapid conversion of natural vegetation into arable lands, exposing big areas to sheet erosion and reducing their productivity happens to be a threat. This problem is partly attributed to the poorly defined land ownership rights (National Environment Management Authority - NEMA, 2016). Declining soil fertility means farmers are experiencing less yields with lower value and less nutrient intensive crops. In addition, land use affects the land available for food production. For example, mining, urbanization and industrialization affect land available for food production leading to food insecurity. Use of land for cash crops also reduces land available for food production. Rural – Urban migration reduces labor available for cultivation hence decreasing food production. The overall goal of the Uganda food and nutrition Policy