1. Presented by
Jennifer Abrams
Pamela Faber
Jessica Fisher
Bara Levitt
Food vs. Books:
Which Has a Greater Impact on Fertility Rates in Ethiopia and Bangladesh?

2. Basic Information ETHIOPIA
Total Fertility Rate: 5.1 children born per woman
Total Literacy Rate: 42.7% (32% of women)
BANGLADESH
Total Fertility Rate: 3.09 children born per woman
Total Literacy Rate: 43.1% (31.8% of women)
We compare these countries because both have steadily decreasing fertility rates. Further, we can compare them because each country faces a different "natural disaster" that affects food security. Finally, we compare these countries because both have made strides in the education of women.
By focusing on more than one country we make larger claims about the effects of food insecurity as induced by natural disasters, as well as education, on fertility rates.

3. Causes of Food Insecurity
ETHIOPIA
Dependent on rains during belg season (Feb-May) for crops & livestock
Severe drought during El Niño, but not entirely predictable
Food reserve consistency issues because of political turmoil – not refilled preemptively, only after seeing effects
BANGLADESH
Crop damage due to heavy flooding
Poverty and the high cost of food
The country is not yet self sufficient in cereal production

4. Effects of Food Insecurity
ETHIOPIA
Biggest effects are on growth and nutrition rates
Clear relationship between food insecurity and stunted growth
Worse for boys
BANGLADESH
Stunted growth and underweight babies
Malnutrition due to limited food and nutritionally unbalanced food options
Reliance on private interests and food aid

5. Policy & Initiatives ETHIOPIA BANGLADESH
Education Sector Development Programs (ESDPs)
Goals:
1. to expand education in rural areas
2. to promote female education
, enrollment in grades 1-8 has increased by 11.3%
BANGLADESH
1993 Food for Education (FFE)--free rice or wheat rations for families with children enrolled in primary school
Female stipend programs

6. Family Planning Information
BANGLADESH
In % of women aged used contraceptives. By 2004 that number jumped to 59% for the same age range (World Bank, 2005).
ETHIOPIA
In April 1993, a national policy of fertility control was enacted by both the Ethiopian government and NGOs
Women in urban areas are more than two times more likely than rural women to want to regulate fertility
Rural Lowland
Rural Highland
Urban
Contraceptive Use
~2%
~2%
1990=12% 1997=25%
Literacy
9.8%
4.2%
61.5%
No Knowledge of Contraceptive Methods
38.8%
80.7%
8.5%
Knowledge of 4+ Contraceptive Methods
10.4%
1.0%
58.7%

7. Conclusions
Both Ethiopia and Bangladesh have experienced food insecurity as a result of climate issues and political instability.
Both have had increased efforts to promote literacy and family planning. Finally, both have seen a decreasing fertility rate in the last number of years.
Both have had increased efforts to promote literacy and family planning.
Both have seen a decreasing fertility rate in the last number of years.
Programs and family planning initiatives directly influence the decline in fertility rates.

8. Overall Conclusions
Pattern of declining fertility rates can be explained through the empowerment of women and the access of those women to contraceptive knowledge and use.
Although food security does not have a direct correlation to fertility rates, it does affect these societies through health, nutrition, and societal stability.