A Review of Food Security in Ethiopia from the Perspective of Human Rights-Based Approaches

Abstract

Ethiopia, the second-most populous country in Africa following Nigeria, exhibits a rapidly expanding economy, marked by a growth rate of 6.06% in Fiscal Year 2020/21. However, it is still one of the world's most food-insecure countries, and a significant number of its population suffers from hunger and malnutrition. The Global Hunger Index (GHI) score for the year 2022 rises rapidly to 27.6, signifying a severe and critical state of hunger and malnutrition. To address this problem, the Government of Ethiopia (GoE) has already launched the Productive Safety Net Programme (PSNP), the largest social safety net programme on the African continent. The programme has significantly reduced drought impacts by 57% while simultaneously lowering the national poverty rate by 2%. However, its effectiveness in both rural and urban areas has been hampered by the incomplete adoption and application of the human rights based approaches (HRBAs). This article presents a rigorous critical review of Ethiopia's food security endeavours through the productive safety net programme, delving into the intricate ramifications of the country's food security challenges being exacerbated by the incomplete integration of rights-based approaches. The assessment used a systematic literature review and identified a considerable number of challenges in the operational implementation of the productive safety net programme, including biassed area selection, exclusion of vulnerable individuals, weakened institutional connections, gender bias, and limited community participation. These challenges are believed to stem from the absence of rights-centred approaches. Furthermore, the absence of adequate legislative and judicial tools to enforce the right to food has exacerbated the country's food insecurity crisis.