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Effects of Food Prices on Under-five and Infant Mortality Rates in Sub-Saharan Africa


Anthony E Akinlo
Ibrahim A Odusanya

Abstract

Over the years, the rising food prices coupled with the prevailing food insecurity in the entire Sub-Saharan Africa region are perceived to be having debilitating effects on nutrition and health outcomes. This paper therefore examines the impact of rising food prices on under-five and infant mortality rates in 31 selected sub-Saharan African countries for the period 2001-2012 using the fixed effects, random effects, difference GMM and the system GMM. The results show that rising food prices exert significant adverse effects on both infant and under-five mortality rates in Sub-Saharan Africa. The paper suggests the need for increased government’s efforts toward increased food supply and urgent nutritional support involving nutrient-rich-food items to the target groups.

Keywords: food price, under-five mortality, infant mortality, panel data, Sub-Saharan Africa


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eISSN: 2453-5966
print ISSN: 1821-8148