Causes Of Food Insecurity In Ethiopia

Many countries around the world have developed food deficiency and food insecurity issues. Deficiency is the lack or shortage of something, so food deficiency is the shortage of food; and food insecurity is when people in an area do not have access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food at all times to meet their dietary needs. There are five main factors that contribute to a country having food deficiency and food insecurity issues, these being: environmental, demographic, political, social, and economic factors. All of these factors have influenced Ethiopia to having food deficiency and food insecurity problems. Ethiopia is located in the Horn of Africa and is home to about 85 million people, and has been suffering from food deficiency and insecurity problems for quite a while. These five factors have contributed to Ethiopia’s current state, in regard to food.

Moreover, the multi-century drought

The location and geography of the country has caused the people to experience famine after famine, leaving many to die from starvation. A famine is in definition, “A great shortage or an extreme scarcity of food over an extended period of time” (Webster). There are several different types of famine that occur in different types of the world. The type that Ethiopia generally goes through is called a Ravallion. During a Ravallion famine, there are unusually large amounts of causalities with extreme shortages of food in certain parts of the population. There are many things that cause famine, whether it’s draught, plague, or civil disrupt. Right now, Ethiopia is experiencing a draught that has killed almost all of their crops. Because of the famines that Ethiopia experiences most every year, there is usually an increase in the amount of people malnourished. This year, 11to 14 million people are expected to go hungry leaving many to starve to death. Ethiopia has experienced many draughts like these, the worst however, being in 1983. This draught lasted two years and the draught alone killed over 400,000 people in one year, this doesn’t include the deaths that were due to starvation (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1983%E2%80%931985_famine_in_Ethiopia).

Food insecurity is when a person does not have access to an abundance of food, and when the little food they do have, is not nutritious (Ruane). One of the big steps in lowering the food insecurity rate, is making the public more aware of the issue. If we started showing the world more facts about this issue, more would be done to lower the problem. If we stated the fact that one of every six people suffer from food insecurity in the United States alone (Coleman), maybe it would spark people to become more active and do more to help. The one of every six people fact is just in the United States. This issue strikes at home, not just in underdeveloped countries in Africa like we think. It is startling to know that food insecurity occurs in every community across the United States

In Ethiopia, about 4.9 million acres of land is devoted to its production every year. From 2003-2005 production statistics indicated that tef accounted for about 29% of the land and 20% of the gross grain production of all major cereal cultivation in the country (National Research Council).

In Ethiopia, there is usually plenty of rain, and the farmers do not have to irrigate their crops. On the other hand, Somalia is very hot and dry farmers can only grow crops near a river an oasis or where they can use irrigation. This makes it very difficult for the Ethiopians to grow food, and they have suffered severe drought several times since the 1980s Lack of rainfall also makes it very difficult for them to raise livestock. Ethiopia has suffered from famines, and many people have died from hunger there. One way farmers can try to overcome the effects of rainfall is to plant a large variety of crops some that need alot of rain and some that can survive with very little rain. This way hopefully they can grow enough crops to stay subsistent which means they and feed and nourish their

The amount of people in need will spell trouble during a catastrophe. Tensions will be high as people go into panic mode. Supply storage facilities may be raided and the food stolen as well, which will prevent careful distribution plans from working.

As the population continues to grow the challenge of sustainably feeding the population increases. Countries like India, china, and Africa are some of the most agriculture abundant locations in the world yet they are the ones suffering the most from hunger. Currently 1 in 7 Americans struggle to eat enough food everyday. Poverty in Africa however is very different from America in regard to hunger. In America 40 percent of Americans from age 25-60 will experience at least a year below the poverty line. This quite the contrary to Africa where most people spend their whole life under the poverty line. The major difference is resources, many Americans can overcome poverty and find a steady job to support themselves. In Africa there are limited jobs, most people have to cultivate their own food and supply their own drinking water. It is an endless cycle of hunger with no real way out unless outside help is given.

Food is a necessary part of ever individual’s daily life. Without food, the body cannot function properly, resulting in poor health, exhaustion, and even death by starvation. Therefore, food insecurity continues to be an international global epidemic. The journal article by Harrigan suggests that the citizens of the Sub-Saharan African country of Malawia are in further poverty due to their lack of food and agricultural resources. The newspaper article from the Guardian tells the real life story of African citizens struggling to farm and find food due to the crop shortages that have spanned Africa for the past two years. This is a current global issue, and the journal and news article prove that there is much to be done in order to help restore

Droughts are a natural occurrence that has been around for millions of years. Droughts are unpredictable; no one can tell when they are going to take place, the severity, or how long they will last. Impacts on of a drought can send shockwaves thought the region. The economy, agriculture, the environment, and the residents of the region are all affected. (Vicente-Serrano, Beguería, & López-Moreno, 2009, p.1696)

More specifically, my home country, Malawi, suffers from food insecurity linked to poor economic policies in the agricultural sector.

droughts that lead to unfavourable farming conditions. Many of the farms in the affected area were

Presently droughts occurring every two years and when it does rain only fractions of what the region is used to comes down because a rise in of this food prices, homelessness, diseases, social chaos is in full heat. One in every 3 people you see is dying from malnutrition.Feeding centers and medical supply demands are so high and the respond to get food and water there is not happening fast enough.If poor hygiene continues death will be the result.

Drought is another factor of climate change that causes severe damages to agriculture and livestock. The effects of drought on agricultural production and livestock holding can be a detrimental issue and result in quality dissatisfaction of products. The agricultural industry can be affected by drought both economically and environmentally. The economical effects of drought on crops and animals can lead to the loss of money and time. When droughts occur farmers lose money because they will have to spend more money earned from their

In Ethiopia, sesame grows well in the lowlands either as sole crop or intercropped with millet or sorghum (Mesfin et al., 2004). Sesame is very drought-tolerant it has been called a survivor crop, with an ability to grow where most crops fail. It has a significant role to the Ethiopian economy as it is used for local uses (local oil extraction, soups and mixed with sugar), export market and as a source of employment opportunity. Ethiopia has high quality sesame seed cultivars suitable for wide range applications, in particular the Humera type sesame is appreciated worldwide for its aroma and sweet taste (Wijnands et al., 2009).