Search Results (304)

Objective: The aim of this study was to compare micronutrient intake and inadequacy estimates using household consumption and expenditure survey (HCES) and quantitative 24-h recall (24HR) data among women of reproductive age (WRA) in Kasungu district, Malawi. Methods: We conducted a secondary data analysis utilizing HCES dietary data from a subsample of households in rural areas of Kasungu district, which were sourced from the 2019/20 Malawi Fifth Integrated Household Survey (n = 183); and 24HR data were obtained from WRA in a community-based Addressing Hidden Hunger with Agronomy (AHHA) trial in the same district (n = 177). Micronutrient intakes and inadequacy were estimated under two alternative scenarios of large-scale food fortification (LSFF). We standardized apparent nutrient intakes from the HCES data using the adult female equivalent metric. Results: Estimated prevalence of micronutrient inadequacy fell within 20 percentage points between HCES and 24HR for iron (Fe), zinc (Zn), vitamins B2 and B9 under both no fortification and fortification scenarios. There were some discrepancies for the remaining B vitamins, being consistently large for vitamin B3. Conclusions: In the absence of 24HR data, HCES data can be used to make inferences about some micronutrient intakes and inadequacies among rural WRA in Malawi and to inform decisions regarding LSFF, including vehicle selection and coverage. However, additional efforts are needed to improve HCES for dietary nutrient surveillance given existing limitations. Full article

The equitable allocation of clean energy access across towns–rural divides is a critical benchmark of modernization in developing economies. This is because it is intricately linked to the realization of strategic goals such as shared prosperity, ecological civilization advancement, and national energy security reinforcement. This research examines the impact of China’s digital village (DV) construction in reducing the urban–rural disparity in household clean energy access, evaluates the effect on towns–rural clean energy consumption inequality (CEI), explores the mediating mechanisms, and considers regional heterogeneity. It is an innovative approach to test the influence of digital village construction on clean energy consumption inequality between urban and rural areas, beyond which conventional research is limited to infrastructure investment and policy considerations. We can reach the following three results: (1) With the continuous improvement of digital village construction, CEI between towns and rural areas shows an “inverted U-shaped” change. (2) From the perspective of the intermediary mechanism, agricultural technological progress (ATP) and industrial structure upgrading (IND) can facilitate digital village construction and reduce the disparity in clean energy consumption between towns and rural regions. (3) From the perspective of heterogeneity analysis, digital village construction in areas with low urbanization levels, high terrain undulation, and non-clean energy demonstration provinces can significantly alleviate CEI. It is on this basis that the present paper proposes a policy recommendation for the Chinese government to effectively reduce the gap between towns and rural clean energy consumption in the process of digital village construction. Full article

Promoting clean energy transition in rural areas is a key path to achieving global sustainable development, protecting public health, and promoting ecological livability. Based on data from the China Family Panel Studies (CFPS), this paper employs a multi-dimensional fixed effects model to evaluate the impact of income inequality on rural households’ clean energy transition (CET) and examines its underlying mechanisms. Research findings indicate that income inequality significantly suppresses rural households’ CET, primarily by reducing basic energy consumption and hindering the upgrading of basic energy consumption structures. Government governance quality exerts a significant negative moderating effect on the relationship between income inequality and rural households’ CET. Further analysis shows that the inhibitory effect of income inequality on CET is more significant in the regions with a low economic development level and low coal resource endowment, and in the western and northeastern regions of China. Therefore, while continuously promoting rural income growth, the government should prioritize equitable distribution, strengthen institutional capacity-building, improve the social service and security system, and facilitate rural households’ CET. Full article

To address the issues of poor thermal performance and high energy consumption in rural dwellings in cold regions of China, this study investigates multi-type energy-efficient retrofitting strategies for rural houses in the Hebei–Tianjin region. By utilizing a two-step cluster analysis method, 458 rural dwellings from 32 villages were classified based on household demographics, architectural features, and energy consumption patterns, identifying three typical categories: pre-1980s adobe dwellings, 1980s–1990s brick–wood structures, and post-1990s brick–concrete houses. Tailored sunspace design strategies were proposed through simulation: low-cost plastic film sunspaces for adobe dwellings (dynamic payback period: 2.8 years; net present value: CNY 2343), 10 mm hollow polycarbonate (PC) panels for brick–wood structures (cost–benefit ratio: 1.72), and high-efficiency broken bridge aluminum Low-e sunspaces for brick–concrete houses (annual natural gas savings: 345.24 m³). Economic analysis confirmed the feasibility of the selected strategies, with positive net present values and cost–benefit ratios exceeding 1. The findings demonstrate that classification-based retrofitting strategies effectively balance energy-saving benefits with economic costs, providing a scientific hierarchical implementation framework for rural residential energy efficiency improvements in cold regions. Full article

Background/Objectives: Healthy diets and proper nutrition are fundamental for human survival. With economic development and rising incomes, the food consumption structure of rural residents in China has noticeably changed. However, substantial disparities still exist in the quality of food consumption between urban and rural areas, and the dietary structure of rural populations remains imbalanced. Methods: This study uses 2020 China Rural Revitalization Survey (CRRS) samples of rural residents for analysis since it asked residents questions about their digital literacy and food consumption. A total of 2827 valid rural resident samples were finally obtained, and the participants had a mean age of 54.844 years. This study employs the ordinary least squares (OLS) model and the two-stage least squares (2SLS) method to examine the impact of digital literacy on the food consumption structure of rural households and its underlying mechanisms. Results: Based on the regression analyses, digital literacy significantly improves the food consumption structure of rural residents (p < 0.05). Heterogeneity analysis shows that at the regional level, digital literacy has a stronger impact on the food consumption structure of rural residents in southern China (β = −153.255, p < 0.05); at the individual level, its impact is more pronounced among rural residents with lower educational attainment (β = −427.506, p < 0.01) and among middle-aged and elderly populations (β = −212.705, p < 0.05). The mechanism analysis reveals that digital literacy can enhance the food consumption structure of rural residents by increasing their awareness of dietary health and food safety. Conclusions: These findings highlight the necessity of integrating the optimization of food consumption structures with enhancements in digital literacy into policy-making and provides valuable insights for developing policies aimed at improving the nutritional health of rural residents. Full article

Background/Objectives: Despite ongoing national interventions, pockets of acute malnutrition persist in rural settings of South Africa, contributing to disproportionate rates of child morbidity and mortality. This study aimed to identify risk factors associated with acute malnutrition among under-five children attending primary healthcare facilities in Msinga, KwaZulu-Natal Province, with a specific focus on dietary diversity and selected infant and young child feeding indicators. Methods: A cross-sectional, facility-based study was conducted among 415 mother–child pairs attending five randomly selected PHC facilities in the Msinga sub-district. Participants were selected using a multistage sampling design from a sampling frame of 18,797 under-five children. Of the 551 mother–child pairs approached; the final analytic sample comprised 415 observations. Data were collected through structured interviews, anthropometric assessments, and dietary diversity scores (DDS). Data were analyzed using Stata 18, and Poisson regression was applied to identify risk factors. Results: The prevalence of acute malnutrition was 29% based on weight-for-height/length z-scores (WHZ/WLZ) and 27% based on mid–upper-arm circumference z-scores (MUACZ). Children aged ≥36 months had significantly higher prevalence of acute malnutrition (aPR = 1.62; 95% CI: 1.15–2.10). Children from households with five or more members had reduced risk (aPR = 0.66; 95% CI: 0.45–0.74), and those born full-term showed a strong protective association (aPR = 0.39; 95% CI: 0.23–0.64). Maternal age was associated with reduced risk, with children of mothers aged 25–34 years (aPR = 0.67; 95% CI: 0.48–0.93) and ≥35 years (aPR = 0.58; 95% CI: 0.35–0.84) experiencing significantly lower prevalence. Mixed feeding was significantly associated with reduced risk (aPR = 0.86; 95% CI: 0.55–1.17), while a DDS ≥4 was protective (aPR = 0.41; 95% CI: 0.04–0.84). Consumption of protein-rich foods was notably low, with only 21% consuming flesh foods and 10% consuming eggs. Conclusions: Acute malnutrition in under-five children was significantly associated with poor diet quality, older age, low household income, and mixed feeding practices. Protective factors included full-term pregnancy, larger households, older maternal age, and adequate dietary diversity, highlighting the importance of targeted, multisectoral interventions. Full article

Foreign remittances have become a crucial component of the Nepalese economy. This study investigates the impact of remittances on household consumption patterns in rural Nepal using data from the World Bank’s Nepal Household Risk and Vulnerability (NHRV) Survey Panel, covering the period from 2016 to 2018. Employing an instrumental variable regression approach, we estimate the elasticity of remittances to various consumption categories. Our findings indicate that foreign remittances significantly affect total consumption expenditure. Disaggregated results reveal that remittances positively influence spending on food items and non-food categories such as education and healthcare, highlighting their role in enhancing nutrition and human capital development. However, remittances do not contribute to unproductive expenditures like tobacco, alcohol, or rituals. Therefore, other things remaining the same, remittance is enhancing welfare in rural Nepali households. Full article

Market-oriented agriculture functions as a critical mechanism by which rural farmers can alleviate poverty and enhance food security, and it is actively promoted in Côte d’Ivoire. However, household food security varies across commercialized farmers depending on context and region. This paper examines variations in food security between different market-oriented vegetable-farming households in rural northern Côte d’Ivoire. Using cross-sectional data from 200 vegetable farmers, this study employs an endogenous switching regression model to address potential selectivity bias. The results show that market-oriented farming is positively associated with higher food-consumption scores, greater dietary diversity, and increased caloric intake. Moreover, nonparticipants or semi-subsistence farmers are expected to achieve better food-security outcomes under market-oriented conditions. Key factors influencing the adoption of market-oriented farming include market proximity, access to extension services, and education level. This paper advocates for policies tailored to specific environments, such as rural smallholder farming communities, that support local markets and encourage entrepreneurship, especially among women and youth, and ensure the accessibility of improved inputs, thereby supporting market-oriented agriculture and enhancing food security. Full article

Against the backdrop of the current rural economic transformation and the intensification of the ageing process, land transfer, as an important land policy tool, has gradually become a key factor influencing the consumption behaviour of farmers, especially older farmers. Based on the four-period panel data of the China Family Panel Studies (CFPS), this study uses a two-way fixed-effects model to examine the impact of land transfer (land transfer-out, land transfer-in, and two-way land transfer) on the consumption behaviour of older farmers. This study finds that land transfer-out significantly increases the total consumption of older farmers and promotes subsistence, healthy, and hedonic consumption. In contrast, land transfer-in does not show a significant effect on hedonic consumption. The mechanism test reveals that household income plays a key mediating role in the process of land transfer, affecting the consumption behaviour of older farmers. Two-way land transfer promotes the consumption level and the upgrading of the consumption structure of older farmers through income portfolio optimisation and risk diversification. Full article

The choice of carbon inequality metrics can significantly influence demand-side mitigation policies and their equity outcomes. We propose integrated carbon inequality metrics, including juxtaposing carbon inequality with economic inequality, disparity ratios across income and age groups, and structural income–urbanization inequality patterns. We then apply these new metrics and use the household expenditure survey data from China Family Panel Studies as a case study to examine household consumption-based carbon emissions in China. We assess the extent to which household consumption patterns, household expenditure, age, and urbanization contribute to the gap in per-capita household carbon footprints (CF) across income groups. We find that in relative terms, the top 20% income group accounts for 38% of total emissions, whereas the bottom 20% emit about 8% in China. Per-capita CFs vary slightly widely in their inequality than expenditure. The CF disparity ratios of all eight consumption categories across provinces concentrate around 4.5. CF disparity ratios of households with elderly members range from 1 to 3 and decrease with increasing household size. Rural CF-Gini exhibit a slightly wider range (0.15 to 0.52) than urban CF-Gini (0.16 to 0.42). Per capita CF of urban inhabitants was substantially larger than that of the rural ones, with 8.83 tCO₂ per capita in urban regions vs. 2.68 tCO₂ in rural regions. This study provides a nuanced understanding of within-country disparities to inform equitable demand-side mitigation solutions. Full article

China’s ongoing urbanization, expanding land transfer, has reshaped rural land use and generational consumption patterns. Using three waves of China Family Panel Studies data, this study applies a two-way fixed effect model to examine the impact of farmland transfer-out on generational consumption structure and explores the mediating role of household income, the moderating role of non-agricultural income share, and regional and income heterogeneity. Findings show the following: (1) Farmland transfer-out significantly increases subsistence, developmental, and hedonic consumption among middle-aged and young farmers, with the greatest rise in hedonic consumption. For elderly farmers, only subsistence consumption increases, and to a lesser extent. (2) Among middle-aged and young farmers, transfer-out raises household income, boosting all consumption types; a higher share of non-farm income further strengthens subsistence and hedonic consumption. For elderly farmers, while income increases, a higher non-farm income share weakens the income effect on subsistence consumption. (3) Regionally, land transfer-out significantly boosts subsistence and hedonic consumption in the eastern region for younger farmers, and all three types—especially subsistence—in the central and western regions. Elderly farmers in the east also see a rise in subsistence consumption. (4) An income heterogeneity analysis shows stronger effects for low-income younger farmers and high-income elderly farmers. Based on these findings, this study proposes targeted policies to promote farmland transfer-out, offering insights for optimizing land use and enhancing rural consumption, with implications for other countries’ land management. Full article

Local food plants contribute to dietary diversity, and hence, to food and nutrition security in rural households of low- and middle-income countries. However, their consumption and use are declining, in favour of simplified diets or industrial foods. This paper presents data from the Sowing Diversity = Harvesting Security programme, which aimed at improving nutrition through better use of local, underused agrobiodiversity in six low- or mid-income countries. Through a Farmer Field School approach, rural communities’ perceptions on nutrition, local food plant use, and food scarcity coping strategies were gathered. Overall, the results showed that farmers recognise the relationship which exists between increasingly impoverished diets and the (declining) use of local food plants. They attributed such a decline to multiple, intertwined factors, being both socioeconomic and cultural, as well as agronomic or environmental. Despite a declining trend, communities still heavily rely on local food plants during food scarcity periods: indeed, turning to local and wild plants emerged as one of the most frequent coping strategies in all countries, and this trend was stronger as the length and severity of the scarcity period increased. In this paper, we discuss the opportunity to further leverage the role of local food plants through integrated (“field to plate”) actions as a way to conserve valuable agricultural biodiversity while enhancing local food and nutrition security. Full article

Quantitatively measuring the poverty vulnerability level of rural households in mountainous areas and the factors influencing the poverty vulnerability level is significant for China to consolidate the existing poverty alleviation achievements and prevent farmers in mountainous areas from falling back into poverty in the future. This study selects the upper reaches of the Min River, a typical poor mountainous area, as the research area and decomposes poverty vulnerability into two dimensions: consumption level and consumption fluctuation. Based on microsurvey data, this paper uses an econometric model to measure the poverty vulnerability of farmers who lived in the upper reaches of the Min River in 2023 and analyses its influencing factors. The results show that Edu, Laborer, and Land significantly impact rural households’ per capita consumption level in the future. Agri-shock, in terms of homogeneous risk, and Hea-shock and Hou-shock, in terms of heterogeneous risk, significantly impact rural households’ future consumption variance. Deposit weakens the poverty vulnerability caused by homogeneous risk (Agri-shock). Physicap and M can reduce the poverty vulnerability caused by homogeneous risks and heterogeneous risks. The research results have important practical significance for the establishment of risk and vulnerability early warning mechanisms in the new poverty alleviation strategy in the upper reaches of the Min River and other contiguous poverty areas and have important strategic guiding significance for the sustainable development of rural areas. Full article

The universalization of basic sanitation remains a challenge. For the development of sanitation infrastructure projects, it is essential to use water consumption data that accurately reflect reality, ensuring greater precision. This study aimed to determine the per capita contribution to fecal sewage (Cp) in six quilombola residences in Goiás (Brazil). The research was conducted in two phases: (a) a literature review on Cp in similar communities (CpL) and (b) the determination of Cp in six residences from different rural communities (CpP), varying in the number of inhabitants (8, 8, 5, 2, 1, and 1 persons in households R1 to R6, respectively). Flow measurements were obtained using a volumetric flowmeter (nominal flow rate of 1.5 m³/h) installed in the water pipeline supplying the toilet(s) of each household. A dearth of Cp data was observed in the literature, particularly for rural areas. Research on this topic remains in its infancy, as evidenced by the small number of publications (nine papers) published between 2006 and 2022, of which 44.4% reported on-site measurements. In the present study, the CpP ranged from 12.10 L/cap.day to 21.79 L/cap.day, with a mean of 16.22 L/cap.day (CV = 0.239). These calculated values lie within the lower (9.9 L/cap.day) and upper (51.5 L/cap.day) ranges reported in the literature. Generally, estimated data are higher than values calculated from flowrate measurements, highlighting the importance of direct measurements—which can also help reduce construction costs. Therefore, it is recommended that flowrate measurements and Cp calculations be expanded to residences with diverse demographic and geographic characteristics, also incorporating meteorological data, to obtain more accurate results. Full article

This study utilizes a national database derived from large-scale surveys to examine the impact of staple food consumption patterns on household food waste in rural China. Using the Tobit model, the findings show that staple food consumption significantly influences food waste. Specifically, southern households, where rice is the staple food, waste 44% more food than their northern counterparts, where wheat is the staple. To address potential self-selection bias, the study employs the propensity score matching (PSM) model to validate the robustness of these results. Further heterogeneity analysis shows that the effect of staple food consumption on food waste is more pronounced in larger rural households with children. These results underscore the importance of dietary culture in explaining regional disparities in food waste across China. Full article