Submitted To:

Dr Isabelle Darmon
Sociology
School of Social and Political Science
University of Edinburgh

Submitted By:
Md. Tauhiduzzaman
Dhaka, Bangladesh

Research Proposal

Title: Assessment of Food Insecurity for Middle and Lower Class People Living

in the Southern Region of Bangladesh

Abstract

About 3, 96, 50,000 people are food-insecure in Bangladesh. 1In spite of significant

economic growth, the country is highly food-insecure. Bangladesh is ranked 146th out of 186

countries in the 2013 Human Development Index (HDI) and 68th out of 79 countries in the

2012 Global Hunger Index (GHI). WFP informs in “Household Food Security and Nutrition

Assessment” (2008-2009) that about one-fourth of the population is food insecure. Low

dietary diversity is a constant problem in Bangladesh, and showed no significant change

across all income groups even as the country experienced a significant decline in poverty

(World Bank: Assessing a Decade of Progress in Reducing Poverty, 2000-2010). In my

study, I will try to find out food insecurity level involving middle and lower class people in

1
As the total population of Bangladesh is fifteen crore and eighty six lakh (World Population Report, referred
to in Current Affairs, December,2014 ), one-fourth of this number is 3, 96,50,000. This is how I calculate what
number of people is food-insecure. This information comes from Household Food Security and Nutrition
Assessment (2008-2009) done by WFP (World Food Programme).
the southern region of Bangladesh. In this case, I will be focusing some probable issues

accelerating food insecurity, i.e. inadequacy of healthy food options, lack of certified grocery

shops, lower income level, price hike, lack of dietary knowledge, vulnerability to frequent

natural disaster, transportation problem and so on. Through using research tools of surveys,

questionnaires, interviews, observations, online database and mapping, I will try to evaluate

people’s access to healthy food.

Background of the study

Food insecurity is not an inequality limited to developing countries but rather

manifests itself globally and locally. It can be studied in four dimensions based on different

magnitudes of scale ranging from global, national, local and household. I will focus on the

local level of food insecurity in southern regions of Bangladesh. However, at first I will draw

out the other analysis of food insecurity.

The Global

The World Food Summit in 1996 defined food insecurity as the lack of “physical and

economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and food

preferences for an active and healthy life” (FAO). On a global scale, one in seven people do

not have access to adequate food (Siegenbeek van Heukelom).

The National

At national level, food insecurity is measured on the basis of how many people are

food insecure. The USDA gives the definition of food insecurity as, “limited or uncertain
availability of nutritionally adequate and safe foods or limited or uncertain ability to acquire

acceptable foods in socially acceptable ways” 2.

The Local

At the local level, the study is done in a particular geographical area as I have chosen

the Southern regions for my study. It means as the lack of “access by people at all times to

enough food for an active healthy life-is one of several conditions necessary for a population

to be healthy and well-nourished” (USDA). In this case, accessibility to secure food will be

measured by the proximity to a grocery stores and the sufficiency of goods in that store. Also

I will take into account other determiners as frequent natural disasters, distance from the

availability of secure food and lack of dietary knowledge for assessing food insecurity in that

particular zone.

The Household

At household level, some families are selected for the study and data is collected

through surveying the members of the families by questionnaire, interview and mapping. The

surveyor tries to know whether food is available at home, from where their next meal will

come or not.

Concept of Food security

In 1992, USAID’s Policy Determination 19 established the following definition for

food security: “Food security exists when all people at all times have both physical and

2
United States Department of Agriculture Economic Research Service, (USDA)
economic access to sufficient food to meet their dietary needs for a productive and healthy

life”. 3 The definition focuses on three distinct but interrelated elements- food availability,

food access and food utilization.

Since the World Food Conference in 1974, Food security concept has advanced,

multiplied and diversified. Classically, food security is thought of as being connected to

availability and access to enough food. Yet, food security largely is influenced by non-food

elements that largely affect food production, accessibility and availability such as unplanned

urbanization, income inequality, overpopulation, animal health, and environmental issues.

Bangladesh has experienced a remarkable increase in domestic food production, but

continuing constraints on access to food and inadequacy of household and national incomes

to purchase food, instability of supply and demand, as well as natural man-made disasters are

barriers to national food security.4

According to WHO definition, Food Security exists when all people, at all times, have

physical and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet their dietary

needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life(The World Food Summit, 1996).

This definition incorporates access to food, availability of food and the biological utilization

of food and the stability of these. These factors are interrelated. Likewise, earning income to

purchase food matters less if insufficient food is available in the market. In addition, a well-

stocked market is irrelevant to those who do not earn income to purchase food. Hence,

developing policies and interventions to increase food security requires an understanding of

each of the factors, their inter-relations and their relevance to particular groups of people.

3
USAID April 1992, 1
4
The whole extract is drawn from “Reviewing the Status of Agricultural Production in Bangladesh from a Food
Security Perspective”, and the essay “Russian Journal of Agricultural and Socio-Economic Science, 1(25)”
 Research Questions

Why is food insecurity on the rise in southern region of Bangladesh? Is any solution

available to eradicate the existing food insecurity?

Hypothesis

Most middle and lower class people cannot access to secure food because they lack

sufficient access to sources of healthy food options. Moreover, they are vulnerable to

frequent natural disasters. They cannot have right choice of food needed to be healthy lacking

in proper dietary knowledge. Apart from these, their income level is so low that they cannot

afford to buy necessary commodities particularly necessary healthy foodstuffs and thus

limiting their accessibility to the minimum level of food security.

Significance of the Study

This study is essential because it can expose levels of food insecurity specific to the

people of southern districts of Bangladesh. As per the existence of low or very low level of

food security, solutions should be looked for to remedy these problems, ensuring optimal

human growth and development of the residents. Bangladesh is indeed still a very poor

country. According to the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS), about 40 % of the

population lives in poverty and 20 % in extreme poverty.5Food prices that are beyond the

purchasing capacity of the poor people of Bangladesh are being increased day by day. That is

why they are deprived of having the food. What they are getting to meet their needs is

contaminated.

5
Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics(BBS)
 Literature Review

Sayeed Sanjidaa under the supervision of Cristian Alarcon Ferrari in Uppsala

University working on “Urbanization, Food Security and Sustainable Development: A

Challenge for Bangladesh” has compiled a survey on food security in Dhaka city. This

compilation of literature provides a vast understanding of the definitions and features of food

security and insecurity. It presents a brief record of policy of food security in Dhaka city,

consequences of food insecurity, the coupling of poverty and food insecurity, obesity and

food insecurity, human rights and food security, and health care and food security. It goes on

to provide food security measurement tools, discusses agriculture and food security, and

interventions to build food security and eliminate hunger. It ends with a useful provision of

literature search methods and programs and organizations concerned with food security and

hunger in Dhaka city.

The literature is helpful for understanding general knowledge on food security and

useful in providing survey samples. However, the literature focuses more on local food

security level in Dhaka city.

In the same way, unicef has worked on Maternal Young Child Nutrition Security

Initiative in Asia (MYCNSIA), Bangladesh. Their areas were limited. They did a survey on

food security at the household level to achieve nutrition security of the household members.

On the other hand, USAID has compiled a survey on Bangladesh: Nutrition Profile.

They found moderate to severe food insecurity among 10.1 percent of ever-married women.

GOSBERT SHAUSI has worked on Understanding the dynamics of Food Insecurity

and Vulnerability among Smallholder Farmers in Semi-Arid Areas of Tanzania. This study is

relevant to my proposed study. Food insecurity and vulnerability is present everywhere in

rural Tanzania but varies regionally, with the central band of the country showing the highest

proportion of households that are food insecure (WFP report, 2007). 6

However, this is a new research topic on Southern region specializing on middle and

lower class people. No research has been done in this region beforehand focusing food

insecurity. That is why new literature is needed to identify food-insecurity and to trigger

solution for middle and lower class people of Bangladesh. The evaluation of the southern

region expresses a desire for further understanding food insecurity on local level.

Study Objectives

i. General Objective

 The overall objective of this study will be to examine the dimensions of food

insecurity among middle and lower class people in Bangladesh and thus develop a

framework to establish an information system to observe food insecurity.

ii. Specific Objectives

 To identify food insecurity levels in the study area.

 To explore the issues for food insecurity and vulnerabilities to food insecurity

in the study area.

 To explore the potential policy options that can improve present and future

food security through reduced vulnerability.

 To inform the vulnerable population of the key indicators aiming at improving

food security.

6
World Food Programme Report, 2007
 Methodology

I will conduct the study in southern districts of Bangladesh. I will focus on this area

for my study as I myself come from this area and as it is recurrently prone to food shortages. I

will select some districts after conducting a reconnaissance survey within the region to be

informed of the dimensions of food insecurity problem. The districts that I select will

represent the most affected parts of the region. My target population for this study will be

middle class and lower class people who cannot afford to buy their necessities, and thus they

are far from getting access to healthy food options. To investigate the sufficiency of grocery

store in providing healthy food options, I must survey all the grocery stores in the

surroundings.

I will use questionnaires to have the opinion of middle class and lower class people

about food insecurity. Through this, I will try to know whether they can easily access their

needs or not.

Interviews of the target people will be conducted by the surveyor (myself) and they

will answer some questions about their ability to access food.

The surveys, interviews, questionnaires, and census data will be conducted in the

neighborhoods of southern districts, and will be provided with after the survey is over and

will be attached in the Appendices.

Data Collection

Data will be collected through a field research over a period of three months. I will

consider the lack of response to specific question in my conclusive data analysis. The

answers to the questions will represent the level of food insecurity.

 Data Analysis

After conducting the survey, interview and questionnaire, I will be able to make a

chart of general trends about food insecurity level. The data acquired from grocery store

surveys will be used to formulate a general trend by entering responses into an excel

document. Then I will analyze the responses from among middle and lower class people.

After that, I will use the results of the data for action in order to get healthier food items into

grocery stores.

Documentation of findings

I anticipate the impact of the results of the research to be effective for realizing the

interruption of food access that can be used for further research projects. I also anticipate the

findings to affect the situation based on middle and lower class people in southern districts by

future policies and infrastructure development to promote the high level of food security. The

research is significant because it will highlight food insecurity situation in the most diverts

parts of southern districts. It is being conducted for the action to happen after general trends

of food insecurity are established.

I will submit a thesis to your institution after my research is over.

References

 The World Food Summit (1996), Rome, Italy.

 http://www.ers.usda.gov/topics/food-nutrition-assistance/food-security-in-the-

us/measurement.aspx, 15-01-15, 04:17pm.

 Human Development Index, HDI, 2013.

 FAO Country report, Bangladesh, 2010.

 Global Hunger Index, GHI, 2012.

 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poverty_in_Bangladesh, 01:05pm, 11-01-15

 World Bank: Assessing a Decade of Progress in Reducing Poverty, 2000-2010

 Household Food Security and Nutrition Assessment (2008-2009)

 Sustainable Development Networking Program(SDNP): Agricultural database.Dhaka,

Bangladesh (2001), http://www.sdnbd.org/sdi/issues/agriculture/index.htm

 Siegenbeek van Heukelom, Tim. “A Human Approach to Food Security: Land

Grabs in the Limelight.”Journal of Human Security, vol. 7, no. 1, 2011.

 Fact Sheet of unicef, “Maternal Young Child Nutrition Security Initiative in Asia

(MYCNSIA), Bangladesh”, Bangladesh Country Office, Nutrition Section, January

2014.

 GOSBERT SHAUSI. “Understanding the Dynamics of Food Insecurity and

Vulnerability among Smallholder Farmers in Semi-Arid Areas of Tanzania”.

 GhoseBishwajit, RazibBarmon, SharmisthaGhosh. “Reviewing the Status of

Agricultural Production in Bangladesh from a Food Security Perspective.” Russian

Journal of Agricultural and Socio-Economic Science,1(25).