Innovations, nudging interventions and food and nutrition security: evidence from experimental and quasi-experimental studies in Ethiopia
For the majority of developing nations, malnutrition is a recurring issue. Globally, one in ten people are undernourished and though the problem exists in every country, not surprisingly, the extent is more severe in low-income countries. In this part of the world, smallholders play a key role in the food system as they produce diverse and culturally appropriate food. This has an implication for efforts to combat hunger. Efforts that aim to address the problem of malnutrition in the global south should make smallholders its central focus. The current food system contributes to malnutrition and significantly raises global greenhouse gas emissions. This trade-off should be considered while redesigning the food systems to tackle food insecurity and malnutrition. Thus, the challenge is how to alleviate malnutrition in developing countries without putting more strain on the environment or failing to protect smallholders. Three improvements—fortification, biofortification, and technologies that lessen women's domestic labour—were the subject of my thesis. These treatments are affordable, offer long-term solutions to combat malnutrition, and take advantage of the target population's current eating habits and food preferences. The main portions of my thesis then looked at how to use these advances to combat hunger. The first three chapters can be classified as technological innovations that occur within the food value chain element of the food system, while the final chapter can be classified as a consumer behaviour element of the system because it empowers women by reducing home labour.
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| Format: | Thesis biblioteca |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Wageningen University & Research
2022-08-31
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| Subjects: | developing countries, malnutrition, low income countries, smallholders, food systems, hunger, greenhouse gas emissions, food security, environment, fortification, biofortification, technology, women, labour, |
| Online Access: | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/125190 https://library.wur.nl/WebQuery/wda/2316617 |
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| Summary: | For the majority of developing nations, malnutrition is a recurring issue. Globally, one in ten people are undernourished and though the problem exists in every country, not surprisingly, the extent is more severe in low-income countries. In this part of the world, smallholders play a key role in the food system as they produce diverse and culturally appropriate food. This has an implication for efforts to combat hunger. Efforts that aim to address the problem of malnutrition in the global south should make smallholders its central focus. The current food system contributes to malnutrition and significantly raises global greenhouse gas emissions. This trade-off should be considered while redesigning the food systems to tackle food insecurity and malnutrition. Thus, the challenge is how to alleviate malnutrition in developing countries without putting more strain on the environment or failing to protect smallholders.
Three improvements—fortification, biofortification, and technologies that lessen women's domestic labour—were the subject of my thesis. These treatments are affordable, offer long-term solutions to combat malnutrition, and take advantage of the target population's current eating habits and food preferences. The main portions of my thesis then looked at how to use these advances to combat hunger. The first three chapters can be classified as technological innovations that occur within the food value chain element of the food system, while the final chapter can be classified as a consumer behaviour element of the system because it empowers women by reducing home labour. |
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