Evaluation of land tenure on household food security and child nutrition among smallholder farmers in Nigeria

Abstract

Secure land tenure is essential to improve smallholder food security and children's nutrition. However, evidence of this association is lacking. This study sought to address this gap by investigating three sub-objectives: the causal effect of smallholder land tenure on household food security; the effect of smallholder land tenure on child malnutrition; and the relationship between smallholder household food insecurity and child nutrition in Nigeria between 2012 and 2019. Panel data from Nigeria's living standards measurement study's integrated surveys on agriculture from 2012/13, 2015/16 and 2018/19 were analysed using flexible conditional difference-in-difference and logistic regression models. The land tenure types investigated included land acquisition via family inheritance, community distribution, outright purchases, rent and free land use and formal land certificates and informal land documents. The Consolidated Approach for Reporting Indicators of Food Insecurity (CARI); food expenditure shares; the household dietary diversity score (HDDSs); the food consumption score (FCSs); asset ownership and the Livelihood Coping Strategy (LCS) were used as proxies for household food security. Children's malnutrition indicators included stunting, wasting, underweight, overweight and stunted-overweight. Household socioeconomic and demographic characteristics were used as controls in the analysis. Land ownership via family inheritance and holding informal land documents might support smallholder food security by increasing their dietary diversity and lowering their food expenditure shares. Households on family-inherited land were 57% more likely to consume diverse diets (HDDS) but were 20% less likely to have high FCSs. On the other hand, smallholder farmers holding informal documents were more likely to have lower FCS (-12%), higher HDDS (+84%) and higher LCS (+2%). Smallholder land tenure had a small but relevant effect on reducing child malnutrition with community-level land distribution and informal land documents in Nigeria. Households on community-distributed land (allocated by community leaders) were eight and five percent less likely to have stunted and underweight children. In addition, while the formal land certificate holders had a 13% chance of having stunted children, informal land document holders were seven and five percent less likely to have wasted and underweight children. Food-insecure households (with poor or borderline FCSs) were more likely to have stunted and wasted children. Households with fewer than three assets were less likely to have overweight children. Children from households with high food expenditure shares were more likely to be stunted, wasted and underweight. Children in food-insecure households (with low HDDSs and LCSs) were more likely to be stunted. The Nigerian government should formalise existing informal land documents and recognise the role of customary land acquisition with certificates among smallholder farmers to support food security and nutrition policies.