摘要：Sustainable Development Goal 2 aims at ending hunger, achieving food security, improving nutrition and promoting sustainable agriculture. Whilst some smallholder farmers are aware of this goal, others are not. The question that arises is whether or not awareness translates into food security. Therefore, this study assessed whether or not smallholder farmers’ awareness of Sustainable Development Goal 2 improves household food security in the Northern Region of Ghana. The study used cross-sectional primary data collected from two districts and two municipalities in the region. An endogenous switching regression treatment effects model with ordered outcome was used to estimate the effects of smallholder farmers’ awareness of Sustainable Development Goal 2 on household food insecurity level. The age of household head, distance of households to the regional capital, membership of farmer-based organizations, access to e-extension, education, and ownership of radio are the key drivers of farmers’ awareness of Sustainable Development Goal 2. The results from the endogenous switching regression treatment effects model with ordered outcome showed that households who are aware of the second goal are more food secure than their counterparts. It is therefore prudent for stakeholders promoting and championing Sustainable Development Goals to educate farmers on goal 2 as their awareness of the goal is critical to achieving food security.
其他摘要：Abstract Background Sustainable Development Goal 2 aims at ending hunger, achieving food security, improving nutrition and promoting sustainable agriculture. Whilst some smallholder farmers are aware of this goal, others are not. The question that arises is whether or not awareness translates into food security. Therefore, this study assessed whether or not smallholder farmers’ awareness of Sustainable Development Goal 2 improves household food security in the Northern Region of Ghana. Methods The study used cross-sectional primary data collected from two districts and two municipalities in the region. An endogenous switching regression treatment effects model with ordered outcome was used to estimate the effects of smallholder farmers’ awareness of Sustainable Development Goal 2 on household food insecurity level. Results The age of household head, distance of households to the regional capital, membership of farmer-based organizations, access to e-extension, education, and ownership of radio are the key drivers of farmers’ awareness of Sustainable Development Goal 2. The results from the endogenous switching regression treatment effects model with ordered outcome showed that households who are aware of the second goal are more food secure than their counterparts. Conclusions It is therefore prudent for stakeholders promoting and championing Sustainable Development Goals to educate farmers on goal 2 as their awareness of the goal is critical to achieving food security.
关键词：Awareness ; Food Insecurity Experience Scale and Sustainable Development Goal 2 ; Smallholder farmers
