Top > World > 2006 > April > 2006-04-11

Bangladesh in Slum Food Study

The World Food Program (WFP) launched an Urban Food Security Study on Sunday to develop a food security profile and to develop a better understanding of the nature and trends in the food security of urban poor in Bangladesh. Under this research project, principal data will be collected through a representative household survey of households dwelling in slum areas in the four cities of Dhaka, Chittagong, Rajshahi and Khulna.

The WFP will undertake this new urban food security study with the Bangladesh Bureau and Statistics (BBS) and the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), USA. Todd Benson of the IFPRI says three analyses will be undertaken using the survey data, the food security profile of urban slum dwellers, the small area estimation of security status, and models of the determinants of food security for urban slum households.

The findings of the study will be publicly released in Bangladesh at the end of the year. Dhaka WFP Representative in Bangladesh Douglas Broderrick said, "With the urban food security study, the understanding of the hunger and food security in Bangladesh will be much more comprehensive."