From Coordination to Community Feedback: Assessing Nature of Humanitarian Food Aid Programmes in Turkana County, Kenya

Abstract

The number of people experiencing acute food insecurity is on the rise. This has been exacerbated by interconnected hunger drivers including conflict, economic shocks, poverty, and weather extremes. Turkana County has been ranked as the most food insecure, making it a hotspot of food insecurity. The significant investments in humanitarian food aid call for the need to examine the chronic food insecurity, hence the need for this study. The overall objective of this study was to Examine the nature of humanitarian food aid programmes on sustainable food security in Turkana County, Kenya. The study was anchored on the conceptual framework underpinned by the Maslow hierarchy of needs. The study was conducted in Turkana County and targeted the household heads who were the primary population. Secondary population included county government officials, local administrative leaders, institutional implementors and educational sector representatives. The sample size of the study was 386. The study utilized both probability and non-probability sampling techniques. Both primary and secondary data collection methods were used. Primary data was collected through questionnaires, interviews, FGDs and observation checklists. Quantitative data was analyzed using SPSS version 26 software to obtain inferential and descriptive statistics. Pearson’s Product Moment Correlation Coefficient was used for inferential analysis while frequencies and percentages were used for descriptive statistics. Qualitative data analysis was done using content and interpretive analysis. Quantitative data was presented in the form of tables and figures while Qualitative data was presented in narratives form and through verbatim quotations. Firstly, the study found a positive and significant correlation between coordination of humanitarian food aid programmes and whether food aid programmes met the food needs of the community with correlation coefficient (r) = 0.494^**and p-value=0.000. Secondly, the study found a moderately strong Correlation coefficient (r) =0.546^** and p-value=0.000 between humanitarian food aid coordination and the transparency in the selection of food aid beneficiaries. Thirdly, the correlation analysis between humanitarian food aid programmes coordination and consistency in the distribution of food aid revealed a Correlation coefficient (r)= .256^** and p-value=0.000. Finally, the correlation analysis between humanitarian food aid programmes coordination and food aid programmes incorporate community feedback indicates that there was a Correlation coefficient (r)= 0.162^**and p-value=0.002. The study concluded that humanitarian food aid programmes were mainly driven by the need to respond to emergencies, largely shaped by cyclical droughts. The programmes were majorly supported by international donors and NGOs, operated in coordination with County and National Government to deliver short-term food relief. These programmes were instrumental in providing sustainable food security in Turkana County in the short and medium term. The programmes saved lives and alleviated suffering by reducing hunger and malnutrition, and provided a platform upon which longer-term interventions can be built. Therefore, for Turkana to exit the cycle of crisis, a gradual shift must occur from reliance on humanitarian aid to resilience and self-reliance. This entails strengthening markets and incomes and expanding social protection in a way that eventually reduces the need for emergency handouts.