Demographic considerations and food security in Nigeria

Abstract

Close to 14 million people in Nigeria, including children, are malnourished. I hypothesize that demographic considerations play an important role in food insecurity within Nigerian households. Using data from three waves of the World Bank’s Living Standard Measurement Survey for Nigeria, I illustrate spatial patterns of food security in the country. Using fixed effects regressions, I also show that, at the household level, larger households have worse food security outcomes and are more likely to report being food insecure. Children from large households also suffer worse malnutrition outcomes. This relationship is significant in urban Nigeria as well, with implications for sustainable urban planning and family planning to address unmet need for contraceptives.