Economic Development and Nutrition Transition in GhanaTaking Stock of Food Consumption Patterns and Trends(ReSAKSS ATOR, Ch. 4) Olivier Ecker (IFPRI)

1. Economic Development and
Nutrition Transition in Ghana
Taking Stock of Food Consumption Patterns and Trends
(ReSAKSS ATOR, Ch. 4)
Olivier Ecker (IFPRI)

2.  Ghana’s high economic growth in the 1990s and 2000s contributed
to rapid reduction of extreme poverty and hunger.
 Economic growth and transformation usually entail a “nutrition
transition” (i.e. changing dietary patterns and nutritional
outcomes), giving rise to new nutritional problems such as
overweight/obesity and related NCDs.
 As overnutrition increases faster than declines in undernutrition
(incl. micronutrient deficiencies), many middle-income countries
have experienced a “double-burden of malnutrition.”
 These new nutritional realities constitute challenges to national
policies (incl. public health, social protection, agriculture).
Background

3. What is the current state of
the nutrition transition in
Ghana?

4.  Three steps:
1. Long-term, national trends in development and food supply indicators
2. Regional household food consumption patterns and changes in recent
years
3. Estimation of Engel curves
 Focus on the consumption of protein-rich foods, because:
• Animal-source food consumption is a good indicator of the nutrition
transition,
• Consumption of foods rich in high-quality protein (of vegetal and
animal origins) is associated with improved nutritional outcomes,
• Overconsumption of animal-source foods is linked to
overweight/obesity and higher risk of NCDs.
Analysis

5. Economic Growth,
Consumption & Child Nutrition
Source: Own representation based on data from FAOSTAT and WDI data (accessed Sept. 2016).
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
1970 1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015
Total protein supply per capita (g/d)
GDP per capita ('0 US$, const. 2005 prices)
Calorie supply per capita ('00 kcal/d)
Prevalence of child underweight (%)
Ghana
Child underweight
Economic reforms
Total protein
Calories
GDP

6. Household Food
Consumption Patterns
Composition of average food consumption and average changes
Southern Ghana Northern Ghana
Urban Rural Urban Rural
2012-13
(%)
Change from
2005-06 (pp)
2012-13
(%)
Change from
2005-06 (pp)
2012-13
(%)
Change from
2005-06 (pp)
2012-13
(%)
Change from
2005-06 (pp)
Mean share of food
in total consumption 39.2 -1.8 53.7 -2.9 46.2 -2.8 59.7 -5.0
Mean share of … in food consumption
Animal-source foods 30.0 0.2 29.8 -0.4 23.5 -0.4 17.5 1.8
Pulses & nuts 1.6 0.0 1.4 -0.1 3.4 0.6 6.8 1.2
Cereals 19.5 -1.2 19.2 1.1 25.1 -3.3 29.2 -3.1
Roots & tubers 12.3 -0.7 20.7 -2.3 11.6 -0.9 12.7 -0.9
Vegetables & fruits 17.2 1.8 14.3 0.7 16.1 1.4 15.4 -0.1
Note: Percentage point (pp) changes in gray indicate changes that are statistically insignificant at the 5% level (acc. to a t-test for unequal variance).
Consumption is measured in monetary value terms and converted to a per adult equivalent basis.
Source: Own calculation based on GLSS 5 and 6 data.
Protein-rich foods Staples
Urban-rural &
South-North
wealth gaps
31.6 31.3 26.9 24.3
31.8 39.9 36.7 41.9
Engel’s Law &
dietary shifts

7. Findings from estimation results:
 In Southern Ghana (urban & rural), income growth is associated with
diversification of food consumption toward more high-quality protein
foods of both animal and vegetal origins and more vegetables and fruits,
and less staple foods.
 In Northern Ghana (urban & rural), income growth is associated with
shifts toward more animal-source food (ASF) consumption, with little
diversification toward other nutritious food groups.
 Consumption levels of ASFs tend to increase linearly with rising incomes
and at much higher rates than those of other food groups in Southern
Ghana (urban & rural), while the consumption levels of ASFs and cereals
tend to increase at similarly high rates similar in Northern Ghana (urban
& rural).
Engel Curves & Food
Consumption Elasticities

8.  There is no evidence for a nutrition transition over the past
decades.
 Ghana is rather about to face a rapid nutrition transition and
increasing double burden of malnutrition.
 There are marked regional differences within Ghana.
 It is timely to review existing food security and social protection
policies and to reform those that have become ineffective and may
have adverse nutritional effects in the near future.
 More rigorous research is needed that helps to design policies and
large-scale programs that effectively reduce undernutrition and
the risk of overnutrition at the same time.
Conclusions