Constance Newman

Gender, Poverty, and Nonfarm Employment in Ghana and Uganda

The authors provide evidence that womens non-farm activities help reduce poverty in two economically and culturally different countries, Ghana and Uganda. In both countries rural poverty rates were lowest - and fell most rapidly - for female heads of household engaged in non-farm activities. Participation in non-farm activities increased more rapidly for women, especially married women and female heads of household, than for men. Women were more likely than men to combine agriculture and non-farm activities. In Ghana it was non-farm activities (for which income data are available ) that provided the highest average incomes and the highest shares of income. Bivariate profit analysis of participation shows that in Uganda female heads of household and in Ghana women in general are significantly more likely than men to participate in non-farm activities and less likely to participate in agriculture.

Children’s Participation in Multiple Food Assistance Programs: Changes from 1990 to 2009

This study analyzes changes in the determinants of use of multiple food assistance (FA) programs by low-income children from 1990 to 2009. Using data from the 1990 and the 2008 panels of the Survey of Income and Program Participation, it compares very poor households with those that are poor and near poor. For both poverty groups, use of other welfare programs, especially Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, is found to be an important determinant of multiple FA program use, but the effects are found to decline over the study period. Volatility in household income-to-poverty ratios is also found to reduce both groups’ participation in multiple programs, but this effect grows for the very poor over the length of the study. Very poor children in households with more employed and married adults are found to use fewer FA programs, although they are apparently eligible for these programs.

Changing Participation in Food Assistance Programs Among Low-Income Children after Welfare Reform

In 1996, the safety net for poor households with children fundamentally changed when Federal legislation replaced Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) with Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF). This study investigates participation in, and benefits received from, AFDC/TANF and food assistance programs, before and after the legislation, for children in low-income households (income below 300 percent of the Federal poverty line). The results show that, between 1990 and 2004, the share of children receiving food stamp benefits declined, most notably among children in the poorest households (income below 50 percent of the Federal poverty line). The share of children receiving benefits from the school meals programs and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) rose, mainly among children in low-income households with income above the Federal poverty line. Overall, the share of children in households that received benefits from AFDC/TANF or food assistance programs grew from 35 percent to 52 percent. However, the net result of these changes is that average total inflation-adjusted household benefits from all programs examined declined. The decline was largest among children in the poorest households.

Understanding School Food Service Characteristics Associated with Higher Competitive Food Revenues Can Help Focus Efforts To Improve School Food Environments

Many school food services sell extra foods and beverages, popularly referred to as “competitive foods,” in addition to USDA school meals. On the basis of national survey data, most competitive foods and beverages selected by students are of low nutritional value. Recent federal legislation will allow schools that participate in USDA school meal programs to sell competitive foods only if the food items they sell meet nutrition standards based on the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Concerns have been raised about the potential effects of limiting competitive foods on local school food service finances. However, national data indicate that only in a subset of schools do food services receive large amounts of revenues from competitive foods. These food services are typically located in secondary schools in more affluent districts, serving higher proportions of students who do not receive free or reduced price meals. Compared to other food services, these food services couple higher competitive food revenues with lower school meal participation. Increasing school meal participation could increase meal revenues to offset any loss of competitive food revenues. Replacing less-healthful competitive items with healthier options could also help maintain school food service revenues while improving the school food environment. Nationally consistent nutrition standards for competitive foods may encourage development and marketing of healthful products.