Beyond Production: Value Chain Configuration, Livelihood Pathways, and Causal Impacts on Food Security in Hararghe, Ethiopia

Summary

This cross-sectional study of 383 households in Hararghe, Ethiopia identified three distinct value chain participation pathways and quantified their causal effects on multidimensional food security. Extension service access was the strongest driver of commercialisation (increasing participation by 50.1 percentage points), whilst downstream value addition generated the largest welfare gains, increasing dietary diversity and food consumption scores whilst reducing food distress. The findings suggest institutional advisory systems and market information access serve as critical mechanisms enabling transitions from subsistence to commercialised and diversified livelihoods.

Regional applicability

This study documents smallholder value chain dynamics in the Ethiopian highlands, which differ substantially from United Kingdom farming contexts characterised by larger mechanised operations and established supply chains. However, the analytical framework linking institutional support (extension, information access) to commercialisation and dietary outcomes may have relevance for UK food security policy if adapted to UK-context constraints and infrastructure, particularly regarding how advisory services and market linkages influence farm viability and household nutrition.

Key measures

Household dietary diversity score (HDDS), food consumption score (FCS), reduced coping strategy index (rCSI), value chain participation type (spot-market reliance, horizontal integration, vertical integration), extension service access, market information access, educational attainment, household headship

Outcomes reported

The study measured causal impacts of value chain participation (commercialisation, horizontal integration, vertical integration, and off-farm value addition) on multidimensional food security outcomes including household dietary diversity score (HDDS), food consumption score (FCS), and reduced coping strategy index (rCSI). It also identified determinants of smallholder livelihood strategic choices across spot-market reliance, horizontal integration, and vertical integration pathways.

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