Food Security and Its Determinants among Women Informal Workers in Khulna City Corporation, Bangladesh
Keywords:
Food security, Women informal workers, Dietary diversity, Determinants, Khulna, BangladeshAbstract
Background: Food insecurity among women in informal employment represents a critical yet underexplored public health concern in urban Bangladesh. Objective: This study examined the food security status and its determinants among women informal workers in Khulna City Corporation (KCC), Bangladesh. Methods: A cross-sectional study design was employed, with data collected from 385 women through purposive sampling using structured questionnaires. Food security status was assessed using the Household Dietary Diversity Score (HDDS), with households consuming fewer than five food groups classified as food insecure. Binary logistic regression was employed to identify factors associated with food security status. Results: Findings revealed that 56.36% of respondents were food insecure. Higher educational attainment and greater monthly income were identified as significant positive predictors of food security, while larger family size and the presence of a chronically ill household member significantly reduced the likelihood of food security. Occupational type and daily working hours were additionally significant, with street vendors more likely to be food secure than domestic workers, and women working more than eight hours per day significantly less likely to achieve food security. Age and alternate source of income were not statistically significant predictors. Economic barriers, particularly low and unstable income, high food prices, and irregular employment, were the most frequently reported challenges to food access. Conclusion: These findings highlight the structural vulnerabilities driving food insecurity among women informal workers and underscore the need for targeted interventions, including vocational and literacy-focused education programs, wage protection and income-support schemes for low-earning occupations such as domestic work, and expansion of social safety nets tailored to informal-sector households with dependents or chronically ill members.
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