DETERMINANTS OF FOOD SECURITY AND COPING STRATEGIES AMONG SMALLHOLDER FARMERS OF ALIERO, KEBBI STATE

Achieving food security is of great importance and necessary for any society to strive, therefore
emphasis on ensuring food security is paramount for all concerned. This study assessed factors
that influenced food security status of smallholder farmers and coping mechanisms adopted to
alleviate the effect of food insecurity. Data were collected from 100 smallholder farmers using
well-structured questionnaire and were analysed using descriptive statistics and binary logistic
regression. The result revealed that respondents’ improved yield (β = 0.60, p = 0.011); Food
aid (β = 1.42, p = 0.027); Educational background (β = 0.696, p = 0.042) and Age (β = 0.60, p
= 0.090) were all found to be significant at 5% and 10% respectively, in addition positively
related to enhancing food security level of the respondents. Although almost the remaining
variables were found to be insignificant, are positively related to the food security status of the
respondents. With regards to coping strategies have significantly enhance their food security
level, as they served as measures which cushions the effect of adverse circumstances, such as
crop failure or drought on household food security. The implication of this study would help
policy makers to facilitate more consistent and comprehensive food production policies that will
enhance sustainable food availability and access.