Prevalence of household food security in Kenya: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Authors

  • Willy K. Kiboi School of Nursing and Public Health, Chuka University, Chuka, Kenya http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6868-1496
  • Patrick K. Mucheru School of Public Health and Applied Human Sciences, Kenyatta University, Nairobi, Kenya
  • Leah N. Mututho School of Public Health, Mount Kenya University, Thika, Kenya
  • Judith O. Kimiywe School of Public Health and Applied Human Sciences, Kenyatta University, Nairobi, Kenya
  • Peter M. Chege School of Public Health and Applied Human Sciences, Kenyatta University, Nairobi, Kenya
  • Ayenew A. Negesse Department of Human Nutrition and Food Sciences, College of Health Science, Debre Markos University, Ethiopia

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.18203/2394-6040.ijcmph20221773

Keywords:

Food Security, Household, Kenya, Meta-analysis, Prevalence, Systematic review

Abstract

Food is both a basic need and a human right. As such, food security is a critical factor in individual and social health. This study aimed at assessing the pooled prevalence of household food security in Kenya. Relevant studies were systematically searched through manual and electronic searches. We searched databases including; Scopus, Embase, Science Direct, Web of Science, PubMed, Google Scholar and Cochrane Library. The Preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses protocol (PRISMA-P) guideline was followed. Heterogeneity of the primary studies was examined using the Cochrane Q test statistics and I2 test. A random-effect model was used to estimate the pooled prevalence of household food security. The prevalence was determined at a 95% confidence interval with its corresponding odds at a p value of less than 0.05. A total of 15 studies were included. The pooled prevalence of household food security was 22.33% (95% CI: 16.60%-28.06%). Households in an urban setting had a lower (19.28%) food security (95% CI: 12.55%-26.01%) as compared to those in rural settings (25.27%) (95% CI: 16.60%-28.06%). Additionally, those studies conducted post the Sustainable development goals (SDGs) had a higher (24.20%) household food security prevalence (95% CI: 11.49%-36.91%) as compared to those conducted before (21.16%) (95% CI: 14.11%-28.21%). Household food security remains a major concern in the country, particularly in the urban setting. Policymakers and the Government (national and county levels) at large should upscale and accelerate efforts to improve the household food security situation.

References

Hassen K, Zinab B, Belachew T. Gender and education as predictors of food insecurity among coffee farming households of the Jimma zone, Southwest of Ethiopia. BMC Nutrition. 2016;2(1):75.

FAO, IFAD, UNICEF, WFP and WHO. The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2018.Building climate resilience for food security and nutrition. Rome, FAO. 2018.

Leroy JL, Ruel M, Frongillo EA, Harris J, Ballard TJ. Measuring the Food Access Dimension of Food Security: A Critical Review and Mapping of Indicators. Food and Nutrition Bulletin. 2015;36(2):167-95.

FAO. Rome Declaration on World Food Security and World Food Summit Plan of Action. Available at: http://www.fao.org/3/w3613e/w3613e00.htm. Accessed on 10 January 2022.

FAO. An Introduction to the Basic Concepts of Food Security. Available at: www.fao.org/docrep/013/Al936e/Al936e00.Pdf. Accessed on 10 January 2022.

Fischer NC, Shamah-Levy T, Mundo-Rosas V, Méndez-Gómez-Humarán I, Pérez-Escamilla R. Household food insecurity is associated with anemia in adult Mexican women of reproductive age. The Journal of Nutrition. 2014;144(12):2066-72.

Niclasen B, Molcho M, Arnfjord S, Schnohr C. Conceptualizing and contextualizing food insecurity among Greenlandic children. International Journal of Circumpolar Health. 2013;72(1):19928.

Melchior M, Chastang JF, Falissard B, Galéra C, Tremblay RE, Côté SM et al. Food Insecurity and Children’s Mental Health: A Prospective Birth Cohort Study. Plos one. 2012;7(12):e52615.

Mutea E, Bottazzi P, Jacobi J, Kiteme B, Speranza CI, Rist S. Livelihoods and Food Security Among Rural Households in the North-Western Mount Kenya Region. Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems. 2019;3.

Rukuni M. Africa: Addressing Growing Threats to Food Security. The Journal of Nutrition. 2002;132(11):3443S-8S.

FAO. The state of food insecurity in the world 2010. Addressing food insecurity in protracted crises. Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO); Rome. 2010.

Government of Kenya (GOK). Constitution of Kenya, 2010. GOK. 2010.

Dong KR, Tang AM, Stopka TJ, Beckwith CG, Must A. Food acquisition methods and correlates of food insecurity in adults on probation in Rhode Island. PLoS ONE. 2018;13(6).

Hendriks SL, van der Merwe C, Ngidi MS, Manyamba C, Mbele M, McIntyre AM et al. What are we measuring? Comparison of household food security indicators in the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa. Ecology of Food and Nutrition. 2016;55(2):141-62.

Castetbon K. Measuring Food Insecurity. Sustainable Nutrition in a Changing World. 2017;35-41.

Smith MD, Kassa W, Winters P. Assessing food insecurity in Latin America and the Caribbean using FAO’s Food Insecurity Experience Scale. Food Policy. 2017;71(C):48-61.

Smith MD, Rabbitt MP, Coleman- Jensen A. Who are the World’s Food Insecure? New Evidence from the Food and Agriculture Organization’s Food Insecurity Experience Scale. World Development. 2017;93(C):402-12.

Faber M, Schwabe C, Drimie S. Dietary diversity in relation to other household food security indicators. International Journal of Food Safety, Nutrition and Public Health. 2009;2(1):1.

Deitcher M, Ballard T, Swindale A, Coates J. Validation of a Measure of Household Hunger for Cross-Cultural Use. 2010;76.

Maxwell D, Coates J, Vaitla B. How Do Different Indicators of Household Food Security Compare? Empirical Evidence from Tigray. 2013;26.

Maxwell DG. Measuring food insecurity: The frequency and severity of “coping strategies.” Food Policy. 1996;21(3):291-303.

Moher D, Liberati A, Tetzlaff J, Altman DG, Prisma Group. Preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses: The PRISMA statement. Annals of Internal Medicine. 2009;151(4):264-9.

Newcastle-Ottawa Scale customized for cross-sectional studies. Available at: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?type=supplementary&id=info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0147601.s001. Accessed on 10 January 2022.

Begg CB, Mazumdar M. Operating characteristics of a rank correlation test for publication bias. Biometrics. 1994;50(4):1088-01.

Egge M, Smith GD, Schneider M, Minder C. Bias in meta-analysis detected by a simple, graphical test. BMJ. 1997;315(7109):629-34.

Kamal SP, Bhoopathy SV, Worth H, Seale H, Richmond RL. Nutrition among men and household food security in an internally displaced persons camp in Kenya. Public Health Nutrition, 2016;19(4):723-31.

Bukania ZN, Mwangi M, Karanja RM, Mutisya R, Kombe Y, Kaduka LU et al. Food Insecurity and Not Dietary Diversity Is a Predictor of Nutrition Status in Children within Semiarid Agro-Ecological Zones in Eastern Kenya. Journal of Nutrition and Metabolism. 2014;e907153.

Waswa LM, Jordan, I, Herrmann J, Krawinkel MB, Keding GB. Household Food Security and Dietary Diversity in Different Agro-ecological Zones in Western Kenya. 2012;1.

Macharia TN, Ochola S, Mutua MK, Kimani-Murage EW. Association between household food security and infant feeding practices in urban informal settlements in Nairobi, Kenya. Journal of Developmental Origins of Health and Disease. 2018;9(1):20-9.

Mutisya M, Kandala N, Ngware MW, Kabiru CW. Household food (in)security and nutritional status of urban poor children aged 6 to 23 months in Kenya. BMC Public Health. 2015;15.

Wangui M, Mbeche R, Ateka J, Wanda D. Determinants of Household Food Security in Nairobi, Kenya. JKUAT Annual Scientific Conference Proceedings. 2018;290-300.

Chege PW, Ndungu ZW, Gitonga BM. Food security and nutritional status of children under-five in households affected by HIV and AIDS in Kiandutu informal settlement, Kiambu County, Kenya. Journal of Health, Population, and Nutrition. 2016;35.

Shinsugi C, Matsumura M, Karama M, Tanaka J, Changoma M, Kaneko S. Factors associated with stunting among children according to the level of food insecurity in the household: A cross-sectional study in a rural community of Southeastern Kenya. BMC Public Health. 2015;15:441.

Kimani-Murage EW, Schofield L, Wekesah F, Mohamed S, Mberu B, Ettarh R et al. Vulnerability to food insecurity in urban slums: Experiences from Nairobi, Kenya. Journal of Urban Health: Bulletin of the New York Academy of Medicine. 2014;91(6):1098-113.

Momanyi D.K, Owino WO, Makokha A, Evang E, Tsige H, Krawinkel M. Gaps in food security, food consumption and malnutrition in households residing along the baobab belt in Kenya. Nutrition & Food Science. 2019;49(6):1099-112.

Silvestri S, Sabine D, Patti K, Wiebke F, Maren R, Ianetta M et al. Households and food security: Lessons from food secure households in East Africa. Agriculture & Food Security. 2015;4(1):23.

Owuor S. The State of Household Food Security in Nairobi, Kenya. Hungry Cities Partnership. 2018;51.

Mwangi V, Owuor S, Kiteme B, Giger M, Jacobi J, Kirui O. Linking Household Food Security and Food Value Chains in North West Mt. Kenya. Sustainability. 2020;12(12):4999.

Gwada RO, Ouko KO, Mayaka ZO, Dembele B. Determinants of Food Security Among Small-Scale Soybean Households in Butere Sub-County, Kenya. Contemporary Agriculture. 2020;69(3-4):90-101.

FAO, IFAD, UNICEF, WFP and WHO. The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2020. Transforming food systems for affordable healthy diets. Rome, FAO. 2020.

Behzadifar M, Behzadifar M, Abdi S, Malekzadeh R, Salmani M, Ghoreishinia G et al. Prevalence of Food Insecurity in Iran: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. Archives of Iranian Medicine. 2016;19(4):288-94.

Shone M, Demissie T, Yohannes B, Yohannis M. Household food insecurity and associated factors in West Abaya district, Southern Ethiopia, 2015. Agriculture & Food Security. 2017;6(1):2.

Chinnakali P, Upadhyay RP, Shokeen D, Singh K, Kaur M, Singh AK et al. Prevalence of Household-level Food Insecurity and Its Determinants in an Urban Resettlement Colony in North India. Journal of Health, Population, and Nutrition. 2014;32(2):227-36.

Tomayko EJ, Mosso KL, Cronin KA, Carmichael L, Kim K, Parker T et al. Household food insecurity and dietary patterns in rural and urban American Indian families with young children. BMC Public Health. 2017;17(1):611.

Das S, Rasul MG, Hossain MS, Khan AR, Alam MA, Ahmed T et al. Acute food insecurity and short-term coping strategies of urban and rural households of Bangladesh during the lockdown period of COVID-19 pandemic of 2020: Report of a cross-sectional survey. BMJ Open. 2020;10(12):e043365.

Caruana EJ, Roman M, Hernández-Sánchez J, Solli P. Longitudinal studies. Journal of Thoracic Disease. 2015;7(11):E537-40.

Pérez-Escamilla R. Food Security and the 2015–2030 Sustainable Development Goals: From Human to Planetary Health. Current Developments in Nutrition. 2017;1(7).

Downloads

Published

2022-06-28

How to Cite

Kiboi, W. K., Mucheru, P. K., Mututho, L. N., Kimiywe, J. O., Chege, P. M., & Negesse, A. A. (2022). Prevalence of household food security in Kenya: a systematic review and meta-analysis. International Journal Of Community Medicine And Public Health, 9(7), 2998–3006. https://doi.org/10.18203/2394-6040.ijcmph20221773

Issue

Section

Systematic Reviews