Social dimension of food poverty of female-headed households after Covid-19 and economic crisis in Sri Lanka

Mohamed Yaseen Minnathul Suheera, Thaseem Mohamed Fathima Wazeema

Abstract


The economic crisis in early 2022 in Sri Lanka has had a massive negative impact on the social and economic life of female-headed households in the country. In particular, food poverty affects many families. This study was conducted to investigate the food consumption patterns of female-headed households after the economic crisis in Sri Lanka. Female headed households in five Divisional Secretariat Division of Ampara District were selected as the study sample based on purposive sampling techniques. Qualitative research methodology was used. In-depth interview and focused group discussion were used as primary data collection tools. The collected data were analyzed using thematic analysis method. The study found that after the economic crisis in Sri Lanka, there was a massive decline in food consumption, quality of food consumed and quantity of food consumed by female-headed households. Most female-headed households consume food only to satisfy hunger. Very small households have maintained the quality of food consumption, which has put them in debt. Traditional food consumption practices have changed and new food habits have emerged in certain families. The study suggests that the prevalence of food poverty among female-headed households should be addressed immediately and alternative programs should be designed to improve their condition.


Keywords


Covid-19; economic crisis; food poverty; food quality; female-headed households

Full Text:

PDF

References


Achini, J., Wijesinghe, M. D. J. W. (2020). Female headship and poverty in Sri Lanka: A household level analysis. International Journal of Research and Innovation in Applied Science (IJRIAS), 5(09), 2454-6194. https://www.rsisinternational.org

ADB. (1999). Women in Sri Lanka. Country Briefing Paper Asian Development Bank, Programs Department West.

Asia and the Pacific Gender in Humanitarian Action Working Group (2022). Gender alert: Sri Lanka crisis report. GiHA WG. http//GenderAlert-Sri%20Lanka%20Crisis%20Final%20September%202022.pdf

Avanthi, K. (2020). Gender and COVID-19 in Sri Lanka: Gendered impact of COVID-19 outbreak-from a Sri Lankan perspective. CEPA Block. https://www.cepa.lk/blog/gendered-impact-of-covid-19-outbreak-from-a-sri-lankan-perspective

Bennett, F., & Daly, M. (2014). Poverty through a gender Lens: Evidence and policy review on gender and poverty. JRF.

CARE. (2020). Gender implications of COVID-19 outbreaks in development and humanitarian settings. https://reliefweb.int/report/world/gender-implications-covid-19-outbreaks-development-and-humanitarian-settings

CARE. (2020). Global rapid gender analysis for COVID-19. https://reliefweb.int/report/world/global-rapid-gender-analysis-covid-19

CEPA. (2022). Affordability of food during the COVID-19 pandemic. CEPA Block. https://www.cepa.lk/blog/affordability-of-food-during-the-covid-19-pandemic

Central Bank. (2020). COVID-19 and poverty level. Central Bank Report, Sri Lanka.

Central Bank. (2022). Report of COVID-19 and national poverty level of Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka.

Chants, S. (2008). The ‘feminisation of poverty’ and the ‘feminisation’ of anti-poverty programmes: Room for revision? Journal of Development Studies, 44(2), 165-197. https://doi.org/10.1080/00220380701789810

Department of Census and Statistics. (2022). National poverty line survey. Department of Census and Statistics of Sri Lanka.

District Secretariat. (2022). District population 2020-2021: Department of census and statistics. Ampara.

Dowler, E., & O’Connor, D. (2012). Rights based approaches to addressing food poverty and food insecurity in Ireland and UK. Social Science and Medicine, 74(1), 44–51. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2011.08.036

Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences. (2020). COVID-19 socio economic impact on Sri Lanka part-II: The social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in Sri Lanka. University of Ruhuna.

FAO. (2022). Food insecurity in Sri Lanka likely to worsen amid poor agricultural production, price spikes and ongoing economic crisis. FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific.

FOKUS Women. (2015). A study on the status of female heads of households and their access to economic, social and cultural rights in Ampara district. Ampara. https://d3jkvgmi357tqm.cloudfront.net/1516009327/escr-in-ampara.pdf

Gordon, K., Wilson. J., & Tonner, A. (2018). Tackling the determinants of food insecurity: The potential of local food projects. London School of Economics. https://groundviews.org/2022/08/08/economic-crisis-badly-impacting-most-vulnerable

Helvetas B., & Roiatti, F. (2021, February). How has COVID-19 impacted communities in poor countries? Here are 9 key findings of a new study. https://www.helvetas.org/en/switzerland/how-you-can-help/follow-us/blog/highlights/COVID-impact-poor-communities-survey (report)

Hirvonen, K., Abate, G., & de Brauw, A. (2020). Food and nutrition security in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia during COVID-19 pandemic: May 2020 report. ESSP Working Paper 143. International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). https://doi.org/10.2499/p15738coll2.133731

International Monetary Fund. (2020, June). World economic outlook update. https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WEO/Issues/2020/06/24/WEOUpdateJune2020

Jayathilaka, A., & Wijesinghe, M. D. J. W. (2020). Female headship and poverty in Sri Lanka: A household level analysis. International Journal of Research and Innovation in Applied Science (IJRIAS), 5(09), 2454-6194. www.rsisinternational.org

Laborde, D., Martin, W., & Vos, R. (2020). Poverty and food insecurity could grow dramatically as COVID-19 spreads. In COVID-19 and global food security, eds. Johan Swinnen and John McDermott. Part One: Food security, poverty, and inequality, Chapter 2, 16-19. International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). https://doi.org/10.2499/p15738coll2.133762_02

Leather, S. (1996). The making of modern malnutrition. Caroline Walker Trust.

Naila, K., Razavi, S., & Rodgers, Y. M. (2021). Feminist economic perspectives on the COVID-19 pandemic. Feminist Economics, 27(2), 1-29. https://doi.org/10.1080/13545701.2021.187690

OECD. (2009). Long abstract—what are equivalence scales? OECD Social Policy Division.

Rebecca, O., & Brannen, J. (2021). Families and food in hard times European: Comparative research. UCL Press.

Rozelle, S., Rahimi, H., Wang, H., & Dill, E. (2020). Lockdowns are protecting China’s rural families from COVID-19, but the economic burden is heavy. In COVID-19 and global food security, eds. Johan Swinnen and John McDermott. Part Three: Labor restrictions and remittances, Chapter 11, 52-55. International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). https://doi.org/10.2499/p15738coll2.133762_11

Sen, A., (2000). Social exclusion: Concept, application, and scrutiny. Asian Development Bank.

Shiwa, C. (2013). Women headed household in Northern Province. Women Development Centre, Jaffna.

Thilani, K. (June, 2022). In a pickle: Ensuring food security during an economic crisis. https://www.cepa.lk/blog/in-a-pickle-ensuring-food-security-during-an-economic-crisis

UN Women. (2022, February). Supporting female heads of households to overcome COVID-19’s economic toll in Sri Lanka. United Nations.

World Bank. (2022). The COVID-19 impact on livelihoods and poverty in Sri Lanka: Background note to Sri Lanka poverty assessment. International Bank for Reconstruction and Development.




DOI: https://doi.org/10.21107/sml.v6i1.18376

Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.


Copyright (c) 2023 Mohamed Yaseen Minnathul Suheera, Thaseem Mohamed Fathima Wazeema

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Simulacra has been indexed in these prominent indexing services:

Sinta 2DOAJIndex CopernicusEBSCOGoogle ScholarCrossrefDimensionsWorldcatHarvard LibraryOxford LibraryUniversiteit LeidenDRJIScilit MDPIPKP IndexROADBASEMorarefColumbia LibrarySheffield LibraryCORE

 

 Simulacra is licensed under a Creative Commons BY-NC-SA and published by the Center for Sociological Studies and Community Development, Department of Sociology, Universitas Trunojoyo Madura, Indonesia.