Publication: Seasonal Hunger and Public Policies : Evidence from Northwest Bangladesh
Date
2012
ISSN
Published
2012
Author(s)
Abstract
Seasonal hunger induced by agricultural
seasonality is often a characteristic feature of rural
poverty. The evidence of seasonal distress in many agrarian
societies can be found in the narratives of economic
historians. With agricultural diversification made possible
through technological breakthroughs in many parts of the
developing world, the severity of seasonal stress and
adversities has been reduced considerably, if not altogether
eliminated. In certain agricultural settings, however, the
seasonality of poverty and hunger, along with the associated
seasonal shortfalls in income and consumption, is still a
policy quagmire. The problem gets more complicated when
agricultural seasonality is locked into a cycle of endemic
poverty, seasonal hunger, and risk of further
impoverishment. Poverty and seasonality may also reinforce
each other through various other forces that create and
sustain both. The thrust of policy needs to be to break this
interlocking cycle of poverty and seasonality. The book has
nine chapters. Chapter two looks at the key conceptual
issues and presents a global perspective on the challenge of
addressing seasonal hunger. Chapter three brings
Bangladesh's reality to the fore regarding seasonal
poverty and food insecurity and the vulnerability of the
northwest region. Chapter four analyzes the vulnerability of
households to seasonal hunger, their coping strategies, and
the extent to which income seasonality affects seasonal
poverty and food deprivation. Chapter five reports some
findings for both the Rangpur region and the country as a
whole regarding the effects of policies and programs on
poverty and food deprivation. The findings reported in the
next three chapters are mainly related to the Rangpur region
only. Chapter six examines the issue of seasonal migration
in the context of mitigating seasonal deprivation. In
chapter seven, the impact of the social safety-net programs
is tested, whereas the effectiveness of microfinance is
assessed in chapter eight. The concluding chapter, chapter
nine, looks at the policy implications while also pointing
to some emerging challenges.
Citation
“Khandker, Shahidur R.; Mahmud, Wahiduddin. 2012. Seasonal Hunger and Public Policies : Evidence from Northwest Bangladesh. Directions in Development; Poverty. © Washington, DC: World Bank. http://openknowledge.worldbank.org/handle/10986/9373 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”
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