Household Response to Seasonal Hunger in Uganda: Evidence from National Panel Surveys
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Date
2026
Authors
Ibrahim Kasirye
Madina Guloba
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
AERC
Abstract
Despite Uganda having constitutional provisions to ensure food security, a
large population of Ugandans can still not meet the minimum recommended
dietary intake (RDI). In addition, there are within-country variations in the
number of cropping seasons, which affect continuous food availability. The
study explored the correlates of seasonal hunger, an important but neglected
issue within the African and Ugandan food security literature. In addition, we
explored the nature of coping strategies adopted by households faced with
seasonal hunger using four waves of a unique panel dataset of Ugandan
households from the Living Standard Measurement Surveys-Integrated
Surveys on Agriculture (LSMS-ISA). We find that fertilisers significantly reduce
the risk of experiencing seasonal hunger. In some estimations, having a
household member engaged in wage employment is associated with an
increased risk of seasonal hunger. Our results show that policies focusing on
smoothing consumption or boosting productivity can help address seasonal
hunger. Concerning the appropriateness of coping strategies, we find that
having adequate storage is negatively associated with the seasonal hunger
experience. Regarding policies, households can adopt ex-ante strategies to
smooth consumption, such as keeping livestock and establishing appropriate
storage facilities. Social protection interventions should thus have a livestock
component. Using improved agricultural inputs should be a major focus for
extension services in order to enhance productivity.