Destitution in Ethiopia's Northeastern Highlands (Amhara Region)
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DESTITUTION IN ETHIOPIA’S NORTHEASTERN HIGHLANDS (AMHARA NATIONAL REGIONAL STATE) Kay Sharp Stephen Devereux Yared Amare April 2003 Institute of Development Studies SC-UK Ethiopia at the University of Sussex PO Box 7165 Brighton BN1 9RE Addis Ababa UK Ethiopia A policy research project funded by the UK Department for International Development (DFID) DESTITUTION IN ETHIOPIA’S NORTHEASTERN HIGHLANDS (AMHARA NATIONAL REGIONAL STATE) FINAL REPORT Kay Sharp Stephen Devereux Yared Amare April 2003 Institute of Development Studies SC-UK Ethiopia at the University of Sussex PO Box 7165 Brighton BN1 9RE Addis Ababa UK Ethiopia A policy research project funded by the UK Department for International Development (DFID) CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .................................................................................................. vi ABBREVIATIONS ............................................................................................................. viii SUMMARY .......................................................................................................................... x CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION.......................................................................................... 1 1.1. Background to the Destitution Study.......................................................................... 1 1.2. Overview of the Study Area ....................................................................................... 2 1.3. Structure of the Report............................................................................................... 3 CHAPTER 2. UNDERSTANDING DESTITUTION ............................................................. 5 2.1. Introduction ................................................................................................................ 5 2.2. Conceptualising Destitution........................................................................................ 5 2.3. Defining Destitution.................................................................................................... 9 2.4. Local Concepts of Destitution in Wollo...................................................................... 12 2.5. Conceptual Framework ............................................................................................. 14 2.6. Conclusion ................................................................................................................ 17 CHAPTER 3. POVERTY IN ETHIOPIA AND WOLLO...................................................... 18 3.1. Historical Poverty and Destitution in Ethiopia............................................................ 18 3.2. Recent Trends in Poverty in Ethiopia........................................................................ 20 3.2.1. The national context...................................................................................... 20 3.2.2. Findings from household surveys ................................................................. 21 3.2.3. Trends in non-income well-being indicators .................................................. 27 3.3. Recent Trends in Poverty in Wollo............................................................................ 29 CHAPTER 4. METHODOLOGY ........................................................................................ 34 4.1. Introduction: Combining Qualitative and Quantitative Approaches ........................... 34 4.2. Sampling ................................................................................................................... 35 4.2.1. Structure and size of the household sample ................................................. 35 4.2.2. Field procedures for random sampling.......................................................... 36 4.2.3. Purposive selection of qualitative sites.......................................................... 38 4.3. Data Collection.......................................................................................................... 43 4.3.1. Implementation of the fieldwork .................................................................... 43 4.3.2. Household questionnaire .............................................................................. 44 4.3.3. Gott profiles (key informant group interviews)............................................... 45 4.3.4. Qualitative (contextual, open-ended) research methods............................... 45 4.4. Analysis..................................................................................................................... 46 4.4.1. Scaling of indicators...................................................................................... 47 4.4.2. Alternative methods of weighting for composite indices................................ 48 CHAPTER 5. HOW MANY PEOPLE IN THE STUDY AREA ARE DESTITUTE? ............ 50 5.1. Introduction ............................................................................................................... 50 5.2. Self-assessment........................................................................................................ 50 5.3. Single Indicators........................................................................................................ 52 5.3.1. Food security indicators ................................................................................ 53 5.3.2. Non-food basic needs ................................................................................... 54 5.3.3. Labour........................................................................................................... 56 i 5.3.4. Land.............................................................................................................. 57 5.3.5. Livestock ....................................................................................................... 59 5.3.6. Financial capital ............................................................................................ 60 5.3.7. Social capital................................................................................................. 60 5.4. Comparing the Indicators .......................................................................................... 61 5.5. Combining the Indicators .......................................................................................... 63 5.6. Overall ‘Destitution Index’ Using Principal Components Analysis ............................. 64 5.6.1. Constructing the index ................................................................................. 64 5.6.2. Setting a cut-off (identifying the destitute)..................................................... 66 5.7. Conclusion ................................................................................................................ 69 CHAPTER 6. TRENDS IN DESTITUTION OVER TIME.................................................... 71 6.1. Introduction ............................................................................................................... 71 6.2. Self-assessed Trends in Destitution.......................................................................... 71 6.3. Community-level Perceptions of Trends in Destitution.............................................. 72 6.4. Conclusion ................................................................................................................ 76 CHAPTER 7. CHARACTERISTICS OF DESTITUTION IN THE STUDY AREA............... 77 7.1. Introduction ............................................................................................................... 77 7.2. Who are the Destitute? ............................................................................................. 77 7.3. Household Size and Dependency Ratios.................................................................. 79 7.4. Where are the Destitute? .......................................................................................... 83 7.5. Can the Destitute Meet their Basic Needs? .............................................................. 87 7.6. What Livelihood Resources Do the Destitute Possess? ........................................... 88 7.7. Do the Destitute have Different Livelihood Strategies?............................................. 91 7.7.1. Off-farm diversification .................................................................................. 91 7.7.2. Labour migration ........................................................................................... 93 7.8. Are the Destitute Dependent on Transfers?.............................................................. 80 7.8.1. Informal transfers .......................................................................................... 95 7.8.2. Food aid and other formal transfers .............................................................. 96 7.9. Conclusion ................................................................................................................ 97 CHAPTER 8. ILL-HEALTH AND DESTITUTION.............................................................. 98 8.1. Introduction ............................................................................................................... 98 8.2. Health Status and Health Services in Wollo.............................................................. 98 8.2.1. Malnutrition ................................................................................................... 98 8.2.2. Immunisation................................................................................................. 99 8.2.3.