FOOD SECURITY STRATEGIES UNDER EXTREMELY ADVERSE CONDITIONS - THE DETERMINANTS OF HOUSEHOLD INCOME AND CONSUMPTION IN RURAL MOZAMBIQUE

This paper uses household survey data from war-torn northern Mozambique to examine the factors associated with higher incomes and improved rural household food security. Incomes and calorie consumption were found to be low and variable in each district, and both are highly correlated with land holdings. The central role of land holdings is largely a result of serious market failure. Food market participation rates and the proportion of net buyers are lower than in other sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) research. Purchased food as a percentage of total caloric intake and off-farm income as a percentage of total income are both very low by SSA standards. In short, surveyed smallholders have adopted a strategy of marked reliance on farm-based own production to ensure their survival. It is suggested that land holdings will continue to be key determinants of household income and consumption for the foreseeable future. Broad-based rural development efforts, possibly organized around existing cotton-growing enterprises, may offer one way out of the poverty trap for smallholders.