Thesis (M.Sc.) - Cairo University - Faculty of Economics and Political Science - Department of Statistics

This study is concerned with measuring the inequality of opportunities in food security using Human Opportunity Index (HOI). The study relies on data from "Egypt - Household Income, Expenditure, and Consumption Survey, 2010/2011" (HIECS, 2010/2011). Food security measurements are always based on its dimensions (factors) which are food availability, food accessibility and food utilization. The study is not concerned with food availability as it assumes that food is available at the macro level. It is concerned only by the inequality of opportunities in food accessibility and food utilization. Food accessibility is based on two complementary measures, namely; quantity and quality measures. Quantity is peroxide by poverty status, while quality is measured by Food Consumption Score. On the other hand, malnutrition indicators (stunting, wasting, under weighting) are used to measure food utilization among children and women separately. The study also constructs a composite index for overall food security among children and women separately, where the child or woman is food secure, if he /she enjoys both food accessibility and food utilization. The study measures the inequality of opportunities for total Egypt as well as among areas and among regions. The study shows whether the differences in HOIs are due to differences in coverage (scale effect) or differences in circumstances of households (distribution effect). Finally, the study examines the main determinants affect food accessibility and food utilization

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