ANALYSIS OF FOOD SECURITY STATUS AMONG HOUSEHOLDS IN MAIDUGURI METROPOLITAN COUNCIL, BORNO STATE, NIGERIA.

ABSTRACT The scope of this research was analysis of food security among households in Maiduguri Metropolitan Council area of Borno State. The specific objectives of the study were to describe the socioeconomic characteristic of households in the study area, determine the food security status among household in the study area, examine the factors influencing food security among household in the study area and to identify the food security coping stategy among households in the study. Questionnaire were used to collect data from fifty (50) respondents, purposive selected five ward in the study area. The data collected were subjected to statistical analyses using descriptive statistics, Food Security Scale (|FSS) were used to analyze food security status of the households and multiple regression for the analysis of the objectives. The findings of this study indicates that majority (84%) of the respondents were male and 16% were female, 68% of the respondents were fall within the age group of 45 and above while 32% fall within the age group of 44 and above, 48% of the respondents have no formal education, only 16% of the respondents interviewed were full time farmers, 84% had none farming experience, 6% of the respondents had 1-5 years of farming experience, 10% had 6-10 years, 2% had 20 and above years of farming experience. These attributes could have positive effects on food security among respondents. The analysis of the results revealed that the major coping strategies used by respondents in response to a challenging situation, likely related to food insecurity or financial hardship. 12% of respondents chose to skip meals, 18% of respondents reduced the quantity of food they consumed. Only 4% of respondents resorted to selling assets to cope with the situation. A significant 22% of respondents chose to purchase less preferred food. 18% of respondents borrowed food or money from friends or family to manage their food needs. The most common strategy, used by 26% of respondents, was buying food on credit, suggesting a reliance on deferred payment arrangements to manage food expenses all as a means of coping with food insecurity in the study area. Based on the findings, there is strong indication that there is food insecurity among the households of Maiduguri Metropolitan Council area of Borno. It was revealed that only 18% of the households were food secured and 82% of the households were food insecure.