Hungry for information: Empowerment and Food Security in Honduran Extension Programs
Authors: Sloffer Elizabeth M. , Buckley Cynthia , Andrade Juan E 
Published: November 2023

Background

The Regional Center for the Horticulture Innovation Lab at Zamorano University in Honduras provides extension services and training to many low‐income agricultural families in Honduras and Central America. In the Yeguare Valley, the Center works primarily through its MIC‐CC program in the department of Francisco Morazán or collaborates with NGOs like Obra Kolping in the department of El Paraíso. Families in these areas face environmental challenges and are frequently food insecure. Most technical assistance from USAID's mission in Honduras focuses on the Dry Corridor (northwest region). The primary intervention used by the Center is the Huerto Familiar con Enfoque Biointensivo. This is an organic farming system designed to provide a family's caloric and some, but not all nutrient needs in a small plot (100 m2). The objective of this work was to evaluate the impact of the Center's extension training with a focus on the experience of women and their ability to promote nutrition in the household.

Methods

Forty families who received training from the Center during the last three years were selected to complete surveys and nutrition measurements. A subset of women from those families completed semi‐structured interviews about their experience in the program. Roughly half of the participants came from the Obra Kolping group in El Paraiso, and the rest came from the MIC‐CC group in Fransisco Morazan. The surveys included the Women's Empowerment in Agricultural Index (WEAI), the Coping Strategies Index (CSI), and Household Dietary Diversity (HDD), as well as social network, demographic and socio‐economic surveys.

Results

The WEAI score for this sample was 0.76. Lack of women's achievement in the empowerment domains of resource control, income, and time contributed the most to women's disempowerment in the sample. Men were more empowered (5DE mean= 0.84±0.12; P<0.05) and more food secure (CSI; P<0.05) than women. Coping strategies against food insecurity varied on severity but were similar between sexes. CSI and WEAI score did not correlate. Men's CSI scores were strongly associated (r=0.78; P<0.05) with the income decisions domain of empowerment. The Obra Kolping groups were both more empowered (P<0.05) and less food secure (P<0.05) than those under MIC‐CC. For all respondents, CSI was negatively associated with HDD scores (r= −0.42; P<0.05). Basic grains and beans were the bulk of their diets (>90% respondents). A lesser proportion of respondents reported consuming fruit (37%) in the last 24 hours, vegetables (45%) or dairy products (54%). Mean HDD score was 7.5±2.1 of 12 food groups. Dietary diversity did not change based on sex or program. Interview and social network data showed participants do not readily identify authoritative sources of nutrition information. Often common sources were healthcare workers, agricultural extension agents, or family members, most of whom have no formal nutrition training. Nutrition knowledge is low in Honduras, and current agricultural extension services do not address nutrition.

Conclusion

Incorporating nutrition concepts, targeted to increase fruit and vegetable consumption, into the Center's training would be a simple program adaptation. However, as income, time and resource control are domains that constrain women's empowerment, training activities should be sensitive to their needs.

Support or Funding Information

Borlaug Fellows in Global Food Security, College of ACES Office of International Programs Graduate Research Grant, USAID/INGENAES