Do the poor need nutrition education? Some methodogical issues and suggestive evidence from Kinshasa, Zaire

African Studies Center Working Paper No. 2INTRODUCTION: It is frequently asserted that the diets of poor urban households in Africa and elsewhere are not nutritionally optimal, The composition of family food purchases is thought to be quite inefficient in many cases, reflecting the nutritional ignorance of the purchasers. At the same time, intrafamilial allocation of available foodstuffs is often seen as irrational in the sense that adult males, the least nutritionally vulnerable group, are given preference in feeding. [TRUNCATED

Methods in Consumption Analysis: Consumer Theory, Econometric Issues and Philippine Estimates

This article has been presented at the Workshop on Methods for Agricultural Policy Analysis held at the UP Los Baños on August 13-14, 1985. It reviews the consumer theory and demand system and the econometric issues in utilizing household level data. It also reviews the Philippine estimates and its significance in nutrition policy simulation.agriculture sector, econometric modeling

Inter-country Comparisons of Poverty Based on a Capability Approach: An Empirical Exercise

We argue that inter-country comparisons of income poverty based on poverty lines uniformly reflecting the costs of the basic requirements of human beings are superior to the existing money-metric approaches. In this exercise, we implement a uniform approach to poverty assessment based on basic human capabilities for three countries: Nicaragua, Tanzania, and Vietnam. We compute standard errors of the resulting poverty estimates and compare the incidence of poverty across these three countries. The choice of approach affects both cardinal estimates and ordinal rankings of poverty across countries and over time. Meaningful and coherent inter-country poverty comparisons can be advanced through international co-ordination in survey design and in the construction of income poverty lines that uniformly reflect the costs of the basic requirements of human beings.Poverty, Inter-Country comparisons, Capability approach

Methods in Consumption Analysis: Consumer Theory, Econometric Issues and Philippine Estimates

This article has been presented at the Workshop on Methods for Agricultural Policy Analysis held at the UP Los Baños on August 13-14, 1985. It reviews the consumer theory and demand system and the econometric issues in utilizing household level data. It also reviews the Philippine estimates and its significance in nutrition policy simulation.agriculture sector, econometric modeling

Inter-Country Comparisons of Poverty Based on a Capability Approach

We argue that inter-country comparisons of income poverty based on poverty lines uniformly reflecting the costs of the basic requirements of human beings are superior to the existing money-metric approaches. In this exercise, we implement a uniform approach to income poverty assessment based on basic human capabilities for three countries in three continents: Nicaragua, Tanzania, and Vietnam. We compute standard errors of the resulting poverty estimates and compare the incidence of income poverty across these three countries. The choice of approach affects both cardinal estimates and ordinal rankings of income poverty across countries and over time. We argue that meaningful and coherent inter-country poverty comparisons are best advanced through international co-ordination in survey design, and through the construction of income poverty lines that possess a meaningful and uniform interpretation (as the cost of achieving elementary income-dependent capabilities).

Commodity price volatility and nutrition vulnerability:

"In this paper we examine the impact of commodity price volatility on calorie attainment and its variability for households at the nutritional poverty line in Bangladesh. We focus on the first two moments of the distribution of calorie consumption and consider the differential impacts across socioeconomic groups within the country. The framework developed is then used to examine the direction and magnitude of the shift in those moments as a result of implementation of a special safeguard mechanism aimed at preventing import surges." from authors' abstractGlobalization, Markets, Price volatility, Nutritional vulnerability, Calorie intake, household consumption, Computable general equilibrium (CGE), Model validation,

The impact of economic shocks on global undernourishment

This paper estimates the impact of the 2008 food price spike and the 2009 contraction in global growth on undernourishment rates. The analysis is based on a methodology that uses a calorie-income relationship and income distribution data. The authors find that the 2008 global food price spike may have increased global undernourishment by about 6.8 percent, or 63 million people. Moreover, they show that the sharp slowdown in global growth in 2009 could have contributed to 41 million more undernourished people compared with what would have happened if the economic crisis had not occurred.Food&Beverage Industry,Markets and Market Access,Emerging Markets,Economic Theory&Research,Regional Economic Development

Income and Price Elasticities of Food Demand and Nutrient Consumption in Malawi

Widespread malnutrition in developing countries calls for appropriate interventions, presupposing good knowledge about the nutritional impacts of policies. Little previous work has been carried out in this direction. We present a comprehensive analytical framework, which we apply for Malawi. Using household data and a demand systems approach, we estimate income and price elasticities of food, calorie, and micronutrient consumption. These estimates are used for policy simulations. Given multiple nutrient deficiencies, income-related policies are better suited than price policies to improve nutrition. While consumer subsidies for maize increase calorie and mineral consumption, they contribute to a higher prevalence of vitamin deficiencies.quadratic almost ideal demand system, food security, micronutrient malnutrition, calorie elasticities, nutrient elasticities, Malawi, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety,

Commodity Price Volatility and Nutrition Vulnerability

In this paper we examine the impact of commodity price volatility on nutritional attainment of households at the nutritional poverty line in Bangladesh. We focus on the first two moments of the distribution of nutrition and consider the differential impacts across socio-economic groups within the country. We also examine the direction and magnitude of the shift in these moments as a result of implementation of special safeguards measures aimed at preventing import surges.price volatility, calories, vulnerability, food consumption, poverty, household data, Consumer/Household Economics, Demand and Price Analysis, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety, Food Security and Poverty, Research Methods/ Statistical Methods,

Determinants of poverty in Mozambique (1996-97)

This report presents an analysis of the structural determinants of living standards and poverty in Mozambique, which is based on nationally-representative data from the first national household living standards survey since the end of the civil war: Poverty in Mozambique is predominantly a rural phenomenon and is pervasive, with over two-thirds of the population falling below the poverty line. The degree of regional variation of poverty within the country is striking. The policy simulations that illustrate the impact that changes in the levels of determinants of poverty have on poverty levels allow us to identify six possible elements of a prospective poverty alleviation strategy for Mozambique. These include (1) increased investment in education, (2) sustained economic growth, (3) a sectoral pattern of growth favoring faster growth in the industrial and services sectors, (4) measures to raise agricultural productivity, (5) improved rural infrastructure, and (6) reducing fertility and dependency load within households. In conclusion, any meaningful poverty reduction strategy in Mozambique must give the highest priority to rural areas and must address these macro-level and household-level determinants of poverty in its policy formulations.Economic development. ,Agricultural policies. ,Education Economic aspects. ,Living standards Mozambique. ,Poverty Mozambique. ,