A mixed‐method study on gender and intrahousehold differences in food consumption from Khatlon Province, Tajikistan

Tajikistan faces significant food insecurity and multiple forms of malnutrition in its population, with women particularly at risk. Social norms related to gender and intrahousehold hierarchy are pervasive. Yet, how gender impacts dietary intake in Tajikistan remains to be studied. Understanding this mechanism is critical to develop adequate strategies for effective, equitable progress in mitigating malnutrition and food insecurity. An explanatory sequential mixed-methods study was conducted to assess the extent and identify the drivers of gender-based and intrahousehold differences in dietary diversity in Khatlon Province, Tajikistan. Predictors of dietary diversity were statistically assessed using quantitative survey data from 1704 adults who participated in the 2023 USAID/IFPRI Population-Based Survey. Qualitative data from 12 focus group discussions, 19 individual interviews, and 21 Photovoice interviews were analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis to further ascertain and understand these drivers. Gender was identified as a predictor of dietary diversity in both quantitative and qualitative findings. Women reported lower dietary diversity than men, even within in the same household. Gender norms contribute to unequal food distribution and opportunities to consume food away from the household. Expressing social values such as respect during mealtimes and perceptions of dietary needs prioritize men and children over women in consuming foods deemed more nutritious (e.g., meat). This study highlights the importance of considering household dynamics and gender roles in equitably addressing food and nutrition insecurity and malnutrition. Mitigating malnutrition in Tajikistan will necessitate gender equity-focused social behavior change interventions targeting women and men across different generations.

Agricultural innovation frames, policies, and instruments: Evolution, lessons, and future research

It’s raining babies? Flood exposures and fertility in Bangladesh

An abundant demographic literature examines the impacts of climatic and environmental change on human migration and health. However, somewhat less is known about the effects of environmental changes, especially flood events, on fertility despite plausible reasons to expect such impacts. We address this gap by examining the relationship between exposure to flooding and fertility in Bangladesh, which has experienced several catastrophic flood events in recent decades. We link birth records from the Demographic and Health Survey with satellite-derived measures of flooding from 2001 through 2018 and fit regression models to measure the effects of flood exposures on the probability of live births in subsequent years. To explore pathways, we also construct and analyze panels of women’s entry into first marriage and mortality among under-5 children. Flooding has uneven effects on fertility across the target population. We detect statistically and substantively meaningful flood-related increases in childbearing among less-educated and higher parity women but find flood-related fertility declines among childless women and those in urban areas. Results also suggest that flood-related delays in marriage among urban women may explain their reductions in fertility. However, findings otherwise provide little systematic evidence that marriage and child mortality mediate the links between flood exposures and fertility.