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Impact of COVID-19 on food insecurity using multiple waves of high frequency household surveys

Nature Dasgupta, S., Robinson, E. 2022-2-3
Article on the tracking of food insecurity and its determinants during the pandemic using multi-country and multi-wave evidence. Using data from 11 countries and up to 6 waves of High-Frequency Phone Survey data (household-level surveys) on COVID's impacts, a fixed-effects linear probability model was used to investigate the socioeconomic determinants of food insecurity during the pandemic for each country. Socioeconomic characteristics including gender and education of the household head; income and poverty status of the households during the pandemic; safety nets in the form of cash and food assistance; coping strategies adopted by households; and price effects of major food items were controlled. The findings suggested that cash safety nets appear to have been more effective than food in terms of reducing food insecurity during the pandemic; and that those particularly hard hit are female headed-households, the less educated, and poorer households. In line with the existing literature, the results showed that, even controlling for income loss and poverty status, those households who had to borrow rather than rely on savings had a higher probability of suffering from food insecurity. Distinct differences in the efficacy of safety nets across the 11 countries, and the differential impact of the pandemic on different groups within societies, suggest in-depth country-specific studies are needed to understand why some countries have coped better than others. This paper highlights the importance of improving household resilience to future systemic crises, and using evidence-based best practice in the design of relevant policy instruments.
  • COVID-19 Pandemic
  • Economic
  • Education
  • Food Insecurity
  • Social Support and Protection
  • Women and/or Girls
  • Africa
  • Armenia
  • Asia
  • Cambodia
  • Central Africa
  • Chad
  • Djibouti
  • East Africa
  • Ethiopia
  • Kenya
  • Malawi
  • Mali
  • Nigeria
  • Southern Africa
  • Sub-Saharan Africa
  • Uganda
  • West Africa
  • West Asia
  • Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs)
  • Adult men
  • Adult women
  • Adults (men and/or women 19+ years old)
  • Households
  • Research
  • Article
  • Journal article

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Undernourished and overlooked: A global nutrition crisis in adolescent girls and women

  • Advocacy
  • Policy
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  • Statistical Booklet
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  • Climate Shocks
  • COVID-19 Pandemic
  • Economic
  • Food Insecurity
  • Gender and/or Agency
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  • Women and/or Girls
2023-3-7
UNICEF’s 2022 Flagship Child Nutrition Report on the latest data and evidence on the status, trends, and inequities in the nutritional status of adolescent girls and women. It sheds light on the barriers they face in accessing nutritious diets, utilizing essential nutrition services, and benefitting from positive care practices. The report calls on governments and partners to work together on ten key actions to transform the food, health, and the social protection systems that aim to improve access to nutritious diets and essential nutrition services, as well as to strengthen nutrition and care practices for adolescent girls and women, everywhere. The full report, executive summary, statistical booklet, and video are available. View Source

Asia and the Pacific regional overview of food security and nutrition 2022: Urban food systems and nutrition – Launch recording, Key messages & Full report

  • Policy
  • Research
  • Article
  • Press release
  • Report
  • Video
  • COVID-19 Pandemic
  • Economic
  • Food Insecurity
  • Health
  • Nutrition
  • Ukraine War
  • Women and/or Girls
2023-01-24
Press release on the launch and key messages of the fifth annual Asia-Pacific regional SOFI report. The report’s highlights capture the challenges and system-level determinants of unhealthy diets in urban areas, both regarding undernutrition and overweight. It presents, among others, data on food security and affordability and the state of progress on achieving the global nutrition targets. The findings profile various urban environments, interventions, experiences, and opportunities to innovate at multiple levels to transform urban areas into sustainable cities. A link to the report's virtual launch event is available including the recording, key messages, and full report. View Source

Impact on public health nutrition services due to COVID-19 pandemic in India: A scoping review of primary studies on health and social security determinants affecting the first 1000 days of life

  • Research
  • Article
  • Journal article
  • COVID-19 Pandemic
  • Food Insecurity
  • Gender and/or Agency
  • Health
  • Nutrition
  • Women and/or Girls
2022-10-27
Article on the impact of COVID-19 related pathways on the first thousand days of life in the Integrated Child Development Scheme and the public distribution ecosystem in India. Data sources: Using Cochrane guidelines, electronic databases, namely Google Scholar and PubMed-NCBI, were searched for evidence between 1 March 2020 and 1 May 2022. A total of 73 studies were identified in initial search; 20 met the inclusion criteria and, thus, were included in the research analysis. Primary studies were conducted throughout pan-India in rural, urban, and semi-urban areas to study the impact of COVID-19-related pathways on the first 1000 days of life. The impact of social security, food insecurity, service delivery, nutrition of pregnant and nursing mothers (P&NMs), and infant and young child feeding (IYCF) varied between geographies and within geographies. Most of the primary studies were conducted at small scale, while only three studies were pan-Indian. The majority of studies were conducted on the mental health of P&NMs and pre-natal and post-natal service delivery disruption. The paucity of the available literature highlights the need to undertake research on the impact of the COVID-19 -related pathways on 1000 days of life in India and worldwide. The best implementation practices were observed where cross-sectional programs were carried out in relation to health services and social security for P&NMs and children. View Source