Dega
 
Document Actions

all people

by Tanya Boudreau — last modified 02/27/2008 11:43

Ensured access to sufficient food for all people at all times

Implied here is the recognition that not all people share the same access to food. How people are affected by changes is determined by how they usually obtain access to food, and what they tend to do to increase that access in the face of contractions in one or more options. An effective analytical system must, therefore, disaggregate its reference population into relevant units of analysis based on common access to food.all people

Usually this means a geographic division (since where people live determines both what they can produce and where they can trade) and it means a social/economic division (since people’s wealth determines their means of production, their ability to buy food, and their means of coping with a contraction). An analytical system that fails to disaggregate adequately risks unacceptable errors of inclusion and/or exclusion.  
Integrating Livelihoods

gathering firewood

What are livelihoods?

Livelihoods are the means by which households obtain and maintain access to essential resources to ensure their immediate and long-term survival. An analysis of livelihoods security, therefore, involves the investigation of how people ensure this access in different contexts and settings. Central to this enquiry amongst poor households is an understanding of food security, because - as a general rule - the poorer the household, the larger the proportion of its total income is spent on obtaining food.   

What is food security?

Many definitions of food security can be found throughout the humanitarian world. At a minimum, however, they all share the core concepts contained in the following definiton: Ensured access to sufficient food for all people at all times.

FEG Consulting makes this definition operational in the context of livelihood analysis through its use of the Household Economy Approach.

 
Personal tools