Đô thị hóa và sự ảnh hưởng tới chất lượng đời sống, an toàn thực phẩm ở khu vực ven đô Thành phố Huế

Nội dung text: Đô thị hóa và sự ảnh hưởng tới chất lượng đời sống, an toàn thực phẩm ở khu vực ven đô Thành phố Huế

1. URBAN EXPANSION AND ITS IMPACTS ON LIVELIHOOD DIVERSIFICATION AND FOOD SECURITY IN A HUE’S PERI – URBAN VILLAGE, VIETNAM ĐÔ THỊ HÓA VÀ SỰ ẢNH HƯỞNG TỚI CHẤT LƯỢNG ĐỜI SỐNG, AN TOÀN THỰC PHẨM Ở KHU VỰC VEN ĐÔ THÀNH PHỐ HUẾ Dr. Nguyen Quang Phuc College of Economics, Hue University, Vietnam MA. Laila Bouallouch Utrecht University, the Netherlands Abstract This study uses the case of Xuân Hòa - a peri-urban village of Hue City - in order to see the effect of urban growth on households’ livelihoods, food security and coping strategies. The research shows that land loss, unemployment and illness are the common shocks in Xuân Hòa. In coping with shocks, households adopt an ex-ante risk strategy. The coping strategies vary with household characteristics and with assets. Land losses are seen to force increased expenditures on food while illness reduces consumption of food. Land loss also affects a shift in diets as protein-rich foods are too expensive. Rice is the most important to the poorest groups as it provides 78 per cent of their daily calories and accounts for half of their food budget. Although urbanisation does lead to higher demand for food that in turn stimulates local production, food production of the affected peri-urban households’ decreases. Keywords: Land acquisition, urbanization, peri-urban areas, livelihood, food security, Hue Tóm tắt Nghiên cứu trường hợp của Xuân Hòa - một làng ven đô của thành phố Huế - để thấy hiệu quả của sự phát triển đô thị đối với sinh kế của hộ gia đình, an toàn thực phẩm và các chiến lược đối phó. Nghiên cứu cho thấy mất đất, thất nghiệp và bệnh tật là những cú sốc thường gặp ở Xuân Hòa. Để đương đầu với những cú sốc, các hộ gia đình áp dụng chiến lược rủi ro trước. Các chiến lược đối phó sẽ khác nhau tùy theo đặc điểm của hộ gia đình và tài sản. Thiệt hại về đất đai buộc phải tiêu tốn nhiều lương thực, trong khi bệnh tật giảm tiêu thụ thực phẩm. Mất đất cũng ảnh hưởng đến sự thay đổi chế độ ăn uống vì thức ăn giàu protein quá đắt. Gạo là quan trọng nhất đối với các nhóm nghèo nhất vì nó cung cấp 78% lượng calo hàng ngày và chiếm một nửa ngân sách thực phẩm của họ. Mặc dù đô thị hoá dẫn đến nhu cầu về lương thực cao hơn, điều này lại kích thích sản xuất trong nước, sản xuất lương thực của các hộ gia đình ở thành thị giảm Từ khóa: đô thị hóa, tác động, an toàn thực phẩm, khu vực ven đô. 653
2. 1. Introduction Viet Nam’s economic structure has been changing ever since the Doi Moi23 policies were introduced by the government. Since then, the economy has experienced rapid growth and integration in the world economy and Viet Nam has shifted from an agricultural economy to a multi-sector-based one, propelled by a policy of promoting industrialization and modernization. The shift towards industrialization and modernization also let to an increase in national development plans focused upon urbanisation. The urbanization rate is expected to increase from 33 per cent in 2010 to 45 per cent by 2020 [10]. As Vietnamese cities continue to expand into the peri-urban areas, the government decided upon land conversion to convert huge amounts of rural land into peri-urban areas and again covert them for urban usage, then providing a compensation package for affected households [12]. This action of governments may inflict many adverse impacts on populations whose lands are expropriated including loss of income, an increase in food insecurity and losses of livelihood assets [10]. This study highlights a gap often neglected in food security studies: food insecurity due to malnutrition but also from overconsumption and poor eating habits. Overweight, obesity, and diet-related chronic diseases such as type II diabetes are increasingly widespread in both developed and developing countries. In some countries, it is already a larger problem than food deprivation. As a result, this concern has been gradually incorporated into the notion of food security, and it can be even interpreted in the FAO definition, which stresses the need for “an active and healthy life24”. Yet, publications25 from that organization still fail to incorporate overconsumption as a form of food insecurity. Food insecurity, therefore, often takes a different shape in the global North than it does in the global South. Nonetheless, living in a globalized world, these differences in food insecurity are commonly intertwined due to greater economic growth. People originating from rural areas are moving to cities and rural areas are being swallowed by the expanding cities at a rapid pace. At the same time, the (new) city dwellers also have an impact on rural areas. The dividing lines between rural and urban areas are fading in many respects, and these geographical areas can no longer be looked at in isolation. Especially the peri-urban areas are very dynamic areas. Not only the large cities in Viet Nam and around the world are growing rapidly; also the middle sized cities and smaller cities are increasing in size and number [11]. 2. Theoretical framework This study has made use of the sustainable livelihood framework. Chambers and Conway [3] define livelihoods as 'people and their capabilities and means of living including food, income and household assets'. Livelihood activities, therefore, have a direct 23 Doi Moi literally translates to open door. The Doi Moi policies represents the economic reform period of Viet Nam which started in 1986. 24 The full FAO food security definition states: 'Food security exists when all people, at all times, have physical, social and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food which meets their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life'. 25 Publications such as their annual report ‘State of Food Insecurity in the World’ 654
3. influence on the household food security situation. The concept of livelihoods also provides a detailed picture of how households cope with a variety of shocks that affect them in meeting their basic needs. In this sense, the framework helps to understand the strategies that households use to cope with the shocks faced as land acquisition. Livelihood assets will determine the coping strategies used. Access of livelihood assets can be modified by factors such as institutions, organizations, social relations, and trends and shocks. Moreover, the household strategies will lead to outcomes which in turn will explain the overall status of the household in relation to food security as it is in the case of this study. Food security in this study refers to the availability, accessibility, utilization and stability of food items. Given its multifaceted nature, it has been difficult to devise a single indicator to measure it despite the improvement in the theoretical understanding. It is even impossible to measure food security exactly, rather we usually “estimate” it. In this study, food security is measured via dietary energy intake, food expenditure and subjective statements. Households use coping strategies that directly attribute to household activities rather than external factors to maintain their food security or combat food insecurity. Households adopt both ex-ante and ex-post coping management strategies in their endeavour to be food secure [15]. Increased use of coping strategies indicates a decrease in food security. Thus, the analysis of coping strategies indicates a decreasing food security situation when coping strategies accelerate from temporary measures (e.g., reduction in number or quality of meals for a defined time period) from which a household can recover, to measures that undermine future lives and livelihoods and damage social, financial, physical, or natural assets irreversibly [14]. Figure 1: Theoretical framework 655
4. 3. Data collection analysis The research has taken place in the peri-urban village Xuân Hòa - one of the four villages of the commune of Thuy Van located at the border of Hue City26. Thuy Van commune used to be an administrative division of Huong Thuy district, however, the status of the commune has changed to being Hue’s urban ward. Thuy Van covers an area of 4.88 km² and is situated just northeast of Hue (Map 1). Latest statistics show that the commune counts 1.812 household of which 530 households are located in Xuân Hòa. Due to the proximity of Xuân Hòa to Hue, there is a rise in population can be seen (36%) which is the result of the new residential houses build in the village. Although no data about the village land use is available, the statistics regarding the main source of income of local household lays in the agricultural sector, even though the agrarian involvement is declining. The number of households which work in the agricultural sector as its main source of income has declined by 25 per cent between 2008 and 2014. Map 1. Geographical overview Thuy Van commune The study combines both quantitative and qualitative data in order to gain a holistic overview. The first step was to gather the socioeconomic indicators necessary to understand food security in the village, by designing a survey to collect the household data on the matter. A random two-stage selection procedure was used to pick respondents for the study. The first stage was to start at the headman’s house and then ask the households that live left opposite his house and then right opposite that house etc. The second stage of randomization involved two waves of data collection, one was carried out in February and March 2016 and a second wave was hold in April and May 2016. In total, 94 household surveys have been conducted. Furthermore, all survey respondents were asked to keep a food diary for a week. Data that was not able to be attained through surveys collected via seven in-depth stakeholder interviews and three focus groups in order to get an interactive, qualitative account of local perceptions on food security and the impact of development interventions in their respective community. This study compares two (former) farming groups in regards to their coping strategy, livelihood pattern and food security status. The first group is the control group 26 Hue city is one of the middle sized cities in Viet Nam where rapid urbanization processes occur. 656
5. and consists of farmers that still own all their land. The second group of farmers have lost (parts of) their land for urban expansion. 4. Results 4.1 Land loss shocks and strategies The households reported a number of shocks that occurred in the village. It included floods, loss of land, unemployment, illness, death of household member and conflicts. The most common shock was loss of land (37.2%), followed by unemployment (36.2%) and illness (10.6%). However, the land loss shocks and unemployment shock are interrelated to each other. The other shocks had low occurrence rates of less than 10 per cent. A principal axis factor analysis was conducted on the 8 shocks with oblique rotation (direct oblimin). The Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) test verified the sampling adequacy for the analysis, KMO = 0.534, and all KMO values for individual items were greater than .50, which is above the acceptable limit of .50. An eigenvalue analysis was run to obtain the eigenvalues for each factor in the data. Three factors had eigenvalues over Kaiser’s criterion of 1 and in combination explained 68.4 per cent of the variance. The three common factors represent loss of land, unemployment, and illness shocks. Generally, the respondents used a consumption smoothing strategy (ex-ante) as a coping mechanism. On the one hand, illness will increase expenditures on health care thereby affecting expenditures on food or food production which is especially apparent in the case of low income households. Illness thereby affects human capital productivity, rendering households unable to produce or provide food for their family. On the other hand, loss of land and unemployment can as well have negative effects on the household food security situation especially when the household member lost land and is unemployed will play a vital role in making food and income available. The negative effects are worse in the case of unexpected unemployment or land acquisition and for households that buy rather than produce their food. In particular, households that are being put on hold for land acquisition face food insecurity on a short-term compared to households that lost their land but received immediate compensation. An explanation for this occurrence is that the households cannot access the land and they will not receive any compensation until the government has acquired it completely. Following the identification of land loss shocks, a similar procedure was done to identify the coping strategies of these households. Overall, the respondent used consumption smoothing (ex-ante) as a coping mechanism. Interesting to note is that the female headed households mainly used an income smoothing strategy (ex-post), however, attention needs to be paid to these results as the female households were not representative. Nonetheless, results indicate that the overall coping mechanisms for both groups include: eating less preferred food (34 per cent), hire labour (20.2 per cent) and eat cheaper food items (19.1%), having multiple jobs (12.8%), eating less meals (4.3%) and reducing expenditure (4.3%). More or less 5 per cent of the households would change jobs and seek for employment outside their communities. However, the results indicate coping strategies for the affected group include: eating less preferred food (39.5%) compared to 29.4 per cent in the control group. Hired labour is nearly 657
6. the same in both groups (21.6% in the control group and 18.6% in the land loss group). Over 23 per cent in the control group compared to 14 per cent in the land loss group would eat cheaper food items. However, 17.6 per cent of the control group has multiple jobs compared to 7 per cent in the land loss group. Within the strategies, the role of land appears to be important with about 20 per cent of the households would hire labour for their land due to the cheap labour workforce and so that the owner of the land can focus on other activities for their household livelihood. However, no one would willingly sell their land, as this is a last resort for both groups. This relates to other studies [4], which indicate that most households would avoid to sell their productive assets like land when faced with food insecurity unless the households do not see any other options. 4.2 Unfair compensation practices The affected group consists of farmers who received compensation and a group who did not receive any compensation. The latter did not receive their compensation since the government is not sure when and if they will use the land and therefore the process keeps being delayed. The hardship here for these landless farmers is that they are prohibited to access their land until the government concretely decides what to do with the obtained land. According to Mr. Khang, director of NGO Hearts for Hue: ‘’The government provide the best for them but they don’t have enough money or sometimes they can’t foresee things. But they want to improve and try their best. They give professional training. Sometimes people hesitate because different place also mean different life’’. The farmers in Xuân Hòa have received compensation packages in different years. The compensation packages under the respondents are mainly based on decision No. 3721/2005/QD-UBND and No. 11/2010/QD-UBND for land acquisition to implement the project (An Van Duong, resettlement, and infrastructure), for which it is expected to become a complex of residential areas for farmers that have been resettled due to hydro power development and to accommodate the population growth in the city. Table 1 provides an overview of the compensation packages in the peri-urban area. Table 1. Compensation Scheme Xuân Hòa Compensation location Xuân Hòa Agrarian land pricing - 780.000 VND/m² land compared to 3.800.000 VND/m² land in Hue - Gardening land will receive 60% compensation Support for job conversion No Allowances for livelihoods - 3.000.000 VND per farm labourer - 30-69 per cent land acquired will get 6 months of food expenses extra covered - Over 70 per cent land acquired will get 1 year of food expenses extra covered. Land acquired 1.411 m² land acquired on average per household (Source: Author’s survey, 2016) 658
7. The land loss respondents thought that the land acquisition brought better infrastructure and development in the society in the village and are therefore not against urbanisation. However, they raised concerns about the received compensation money which they claimed is under the land market value concentrated mainly on the argument that compensation was not sufficient to buy a similar parcel of land in another place. No job conversions and not having the opportunity to go against the governments’ decisions and raise their concerns were also major issues for the villagers. Another point of frustration was that the government delays the land acquisition process with years which the participants claim also delays their business since they cannot operate until the government decides to take the land or not. The compensation in Xuân Hòa is on average 780.000 VND per m² compared to 3.8 million VND per m² in Hue City, and gardening land only get 60 per cent of the compensation compared to housing land. A reason for the discrepancy could be that land in the city is scarce and already developed, however, that does not justify that the villagers only get 20 per cent of the market value. Respondents who lost under 30 per cent of their land only got compensation in money. Respondents who lost between 30-69 per cent also got 6 months of food expenses on top of the compensation and respondents who lost more than 70 per cent got 1 year food expenses covered on top. Food security is an issue on the long-term because the respondents do not save the compensation money. The compensation money is mainly used to repair and upgrade their house (58.1%); followed by giving all the money to their (oldest) son(s) (16.3%) to build a house so that the parents when facing hardship can live with their eldest son and only 7 per cent of the respondents used the money to start a new business. The respondents also claimed that the compensation money is below the market value. The current market value, according to the respondents, is 11 million dong per m², while they only receive nearly 1 million dong per m². The Board for compensation, support and resettlement (BCSR), which is a temporary committee established under the District People’s committee to work on land compensation and resettlement, follows administrative regulations and not market mechanisms. The compensation in the Xuân Hòa is not in line with the guidelines set by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) which implies a full and complete equivalent package for the losses sustained by the affected people [1]. 4.3 Livelihood diversification Food insecurity is reflected differently in the livelihood strategies. Some farmers are more devoted to preventive measures, while others take risks, either out of necessity or choice. Their livelihood strategies, as well as engagement in and motivation for livelihood diversification, strongly appear to be resulting from the assets, incomes and capacities of the individual household. This determines their food insecurity status as well as access to livelihood diversification. Livelihood assets were measured by questioning affected households and non-affected households of land conversion in Xuân Hòa. This has been done to identify the impact of the land conversion. Table 2 shows that the study population comprises of 94 households of which 74.5 per cent are male headed households with an average of 5 people per household containing 3 family generations. Across the sample, the 659
8. average age of the household head is 60 years. The households on average own 1.069m² of land. The level of education among the questioned households is very low. The majority had some primary schooling (51.1%) while about 26.6 per cent had followed some secondary schooling. The study divides two groups of farmers and consist of 43 farming households that have lost land (45.7%) and 51 farming households that did not lost any land (54.3%). The decreasing role of natural capital is due to the growing importance of the non- agricultural sector. Due to this development, the role of human capital is becoming more and more important as well. The quality and quantity of human capital assets determine the opportunities that the farmers can take upon successfully. Villagers further make extensive use of their own social networks to ask for advice or help. Most farmers know each other and therefore it is more accessible to ask for help from neighbours and relatives. Family ties remains essential in Xuân Hòa, since several generations live together as they operate as a single household unit. The households cooperate to secure everyone’s livelihood and therefore it is common to see that the oldest son takes care of his parents once they are unable to take care of themselves, hence that parts of the compensation is given to the son. Agricultural land conversion clearly changes the assets people possess. The transition from a rural to a peri-urban area has influenced the lives and the household income of the villagers in Xuân Hòa who have always relied on farmland production. The role of the agrarian sector is changing, in particular in its contribution to household incomes in Xuân Hòa. In lieu of the livelihood activities, the findings show a high degree of income diversification. It indicates that non-agricultural activities are increasing as livelihood activities since both group deprive around 30 per cent of their income from this sector. Having farmland does help in decreasing households’ expenditures in particular food expenditure since the households with land do not need to buy (additional) rice for their consumption. Although, the means of risk minimisation might not be optimal, they are very important to the farmers, as no other means are available. Yet, the farmers would have more extensive coping capabilities if they had higher incomes as can been seen in the control group. In this way, incomes resulting from activities undertaken as a means for compensating for land constraints can be ascribed as attributing to risk minimisation. Compensation for land constraints thus reduces poverty as well as facilitates coping with food insecurity. However, not all the households are much engaged in activities that compensate for their land constraints. Inaccessibility appears to be the reason. Besides the sale of assets, wage labour is the main coping activity. Wage labour is accessible to all, however, it is perceived as a last resort due to the low income generated from it. Hence, the farmers only engage in this activity during a period of food shortage, when it is absolutely necessary. 660
9. Table 2. Descriptive Summary of Asset Distribution, control and the affected group MEAN STANDARD DEVIATION ASSETS Control Land loss Control Land loss Natural capital: Land size (m²) 1272.33 826.98 1252.24 960.98 Physical capital: Livestock (VND) 572.549 648.837 1.447.940 1.438.149 Rice for HH (KG) 26 17.26 22.20 21.42 Human capital: Household size 4.63 6.27 2.25 2.19 Children 1.27 3.16 1.37 2.43 Adults 3.35 3.11 1.48 1.41 Age 58.20 62.51 13.07 13.73 Sex (male) 1.31 1.16 0.47 0.37 Literacy (primary) 3.29 3.42 1.10 1.05 Financial capital: Rice Income (VND) 1.994.441 1.022.174 800.744 1.320.315 Other agri income (VND) 1.572.549 1.447.940 648.837 1.438.149 Non-agri income (VND) 3.460.784 2.228.998 1.448.837 2.888.101 Other HH member income (VND) 4.552.941 3.409.302 5.811.105 4.078.913 Total Income (VND) 11.580.715 8.108.414 6.939.611 5.217.478 Compensation (VND) 0.00 277.179.487 0.00 391.160.645 Savings (VND) 392.157 0.00 2.800.561 0.00 Social capital: Friends with government (no) 1.78 1.67 0.41 0.47 Community meetings 3.00 2.91 0.00 0.43 (Source: Author’s survey, 2016) 4.4 Irregular food security Food security in this study is measured as the change in food consumption. Like in other emerging economies, growth in income per capita is accompanied by a change in diets from rice to processed foods. This section explains food security and its four pillars (availability, accessibility, utilization, and stability). During the focus groups with the respondents, it was made clear that many households in Xuân Hòa have problems with food security and that a shift in consumption mobility occurs. The main cause for food insecurity was the low income farmers receive and unemployment in particular with the older farmers since they are not able to change their jobs due to their age. Rising incomes and the influence of urbanization have contributed to changes in the Vietnamese diet. Dietary transitions refer to changes in the types of foods that households and communities are able to access and consume [5]. Food security due to overconsumption is being caused, according to the participants, due to the easier access to Hue and an increase in popularity of American fast-food chains. 661
10. The food security present in the village has elements of transitory food insecurity in terms of irregularity. This irregularity exists when the affected farmers run out of their compensation money. They do, however, undertake preventive measures in order to mitigate the consequences of this period. Hence, these measures reflect the nature of the food insecurity, which they experience. While national, or at least larger-scale, food shortage tends to increase food prices dramatically, household food shortage is not merely a consequence of external factors. The vulnerability of the households and their livelihood strategies are of great significance to the severity of their food shortage. The first pillar, food availability is unstable in Xuân Hòa. The respondents who lost their land claimed to have difficulties in buying beef, fish and dairy products because this was too expensive for them. The control group said they found it difficult to find a variety of fish near the village. Land loss is seen to affect a shift in diets as protein-rich foods are too expensive and people (children) need to resort to cheap foods like instant noodles and pork rather than preferred food such as sweet potatoes and beef. Furthermore, the food production of the affected peri-urban households decrease with a 17kg rice production per month compared to 26kg in the control group (Table 3). Table 3. Food Availability Comparison Characteristics used Control group Affected group Agrarian land 1.272 m² 827 m² Rice production 26 kg 17 kg Livestock 572.549 VND 648.837 VND (Source: Author’s survey, 2016) Food availability is threatened by agrarian land conversion because the land loss group are producing less and therefore need to buy food they otherwise would cultivate. The food products available in the village fail to meet the necessary nutritional requirements for a normal, healthy development, since the village sells limited food items. The respondents who lost their land claimed to have difficulties in buying beef, fish and dairy products because this was too expensive for them. The control group said they found it difficult to find lamb and a variety of fish near the village. Land loss is seen to affect a shift in diets as protein-rich foods are too expensive and people (children) need to resort to cheap foods like instant noodles and pork rather than preferred food such as sweet potatoes and beef. The weaknesses in the food security pillars makes the village vulnerable to shocks in their food supply. Mainly shocks due to land loss and unemployment are heavily felt by the respondents. The second pillar, access to food in the village is vulnerable, erratic, and unpredictable. Rice is the most important energy intake in the household and is even providing 78 per cent of the daily calories of the poorer households which accounts for half of their food budget (Table 4). The land loss group is more likely to spend more on food items than the control group according the multinomial logit regression model. Although, urbanisation is linked to higher demand for food that in turn stimulates local production, because the villagers are losing their agricultural land, their production is decreasing. The 662
11. land loss group produces 17kg of rice per month for their households compared to 26kg in the control group due to loss of land. For the most vulnerable, access to food is limited due to not having the means to access it. Transportation to get to food is not an issue for all the respondents questioned due to the market being located at 10 minutes walking distance. The average caloric intake in the village is 1149 calories per person. A downward mobility consumption pattern exists in the village since 50 per cent of the questioned households are locally food insecure due to food shortages. Their poverty status was established based on their farm incomes, which constitute their main source of income and basis of their subsistence. The inadequate farm incomes are a result of land constraints in terms of small plots left to cultivate. While the constraints can immediately be influenced by the farmers themselves, their only way of livelihood maintenance appears to be through engagement in activities in addition to farming. Livelihood diversification is hence motivated by poverty and food insecurity. The nature of the food insecurity is reflected by the additional activities in which the farmers engage. These are both off-farm and non-farm activities. Besides on-farm diversification, other means of risk minimisation are conducted. These include eating less and asserting to cheaper food items. The risk minimisation taking place within the households thus has the dual intension of preventing income loss and preventing destitution when crisis occurs. This hereby reflects the transitory aspects of the food insecurity. Table 4. Food Accessibility Comparison Characteristics used Control group Affected group Income from rice (month) 1.994.441 VND 1.022.174 VND Rice bought 20% of food budget spend 35% of food budget spend on rice on rice (for the poorest households 50% of their food budget) Average Food budget 1.815.686 VND 1.713.953 VND (month) (Source: Author’s survey, 2016) The third pillar, the lack of food safety is the biggest problem in the utilisation dimension of food security in Xuân Hòa. The respondents complained about food poising in the village. The problem of unsafe foods is becoming serious and difficult to control. It has caught the attention of the whole society in recent times with the company Formosa Steel being accused of dumping its waste in the sea causing millions of fish to die and chemicals such as Sodium Metabisulfite27 being on the rise. In particular control of imported foods, especially from china, is still weak. Controlling imports of dairy products, confectionary, fresh fruit and vegetables, and pig and poultry internal organs are particularly important due to the likelihood of high levels of dangerous substances and the use of dangerous chemicals for preservation. The average caloric intake in the village is 27 Sodium metabisulfite is a white crystalline or powder. It is used as a food preservative, a medical antioxidant, and a disinfectant for brewing and winemaking equipment and as a laboratory reagent. 663
12. 1149 calories per person and 50% of the respondents consume less than the average. Most households consumed 17 rice meals per week per person and 4 other meals usually containing noodles (Table 5). Table 5. Food Utilisation Comparison Characteristics used Control group Affected group Rice consumption per 16x 17x week Caloric percentage from 43% of total caloric 59% of total caloric rice consumption comes from consumption comes from rice rice (for the poorest households it is 78%) (Source: Author’s survey, 2016) Rice is most important to the poorest groups in the village as it provides 78 per cent of their daily calories and accounts for half of their food budget. The land loss group is more likely to spend more on food items than the control group according the multinomial logit regression model because the affected group only can produce 17kg of rice per month for their households compared to 26kg in the control group. With barely any other activities for the older households to supplement their income to buy additional food, the access and consumption pillars of food security stand in a vulnerable, erratic, and unpredictable position. If the pillar of access is to be secured in Xuân Hòa, more attention needs to be addressed to the means in which its most vulnerable community members can acquire food. Whether its income diversification programs or securing fair market prices for their products. The lack of food safety is the biggest problem in the utilisation dimension of food security in Xuân Hòa. The problem of unsafe foods is becoming serious and difficult to control. It has caught the attention of the whole society in recent times with Formosa Steel being accused of dumping its waste in the sea causing millions of fish to die and chemicals such as Sodium Metabisulfite being on the rise. In particular control of imported foods, especially from china, is still weak. Controlling imports of dairy products, confectionary, fresh fruit and vegetables, and pig and poultry internal organs are particularly important due to the likelihood of high levels of dangerous substances and the use of dangerous chemicals for preservation. The final pillar is food stability. The weaknesses in the pillars of food security make the village vulnerable to shocks in their food supply, thus making food stability unstable. Mainly shocks due to land loss and unemployment are heavily felt by the respondents. Furthermore, unsafe foods are also on the rise and are worrying the villagers to anextend that they are reluctant to consume certain foods or buy foods from unknown sources. The commune also lack a safety net to assure that food is available, accessible, and suitable to utilize. The downward mobility in the village occurs when the farmers are of age, unemployed and have little to no land access. The upward mobility that is seen in the village is due to an easier access to the city, increase in income and in American fast-food 664
13. outlets. In particular, children are vulnerable to upward mobility and food insecurity due to overconsumption of high fat-oily-and sugary food items. Furthermore, an upward mobility in consumption can also been seen in the village. The growing popularity of high-fat, high- sugar, high-salt processed foods, appears to be driving up the number of people affected by obesity-related disorders, such as diabetes [13]. In Xuân Hòa, most farmers face food insecurity due to the problems in the pillars of food security and food deprivation. However, 6.4 per cent of the respondents questioned ate more than 2200 calories a day and were visibly overweight and their children had bad and black teeth which indicates a rise in food insecurity by overconsumption of unhealthy foods. A rising concern is caused by overconsumption and unhealthy eating habits in the village. Overweight, obesity, and diet- related diseases such as type II diabetes are increasing in the village and it might become a larger problem in the future than food deprivation is. Xuân Hòa is experiencing food insecurity in the form of deprivation and overconsumption since 50 per cent of the households questioned are food insecure due to the lack of food (downward mobility) and 6.5 per cent is overweight due to overconsumption of food (upward mobility). This trend is also seen in Viet Nam where 28 per cent of the rural children suffer from malnutrition while, 20 per cent living in urban areas suffer from obesity [7]. 5. Discussion This study concludes that household size is significant which indicates that households with more people are more likely to be more food insecure, a one member increase in household size in Xuân Hòa will decrease by 0.359 times of households becoming food secure. Seemingly, food security worsened with increasing the age of household head. The age of the household head had a positive sign which indicates that increasing the age of the household tends to worsen household food security28. However, a few issues require careful attention as far as these outcomes are concerned. The study involved respondents from Xuân Hòa. Comparison of the households surveyed in Xuân Hòa and their livelihoods and those outside this peri-urban area will not be logical due to the differences and comparative advantages of the village. Xuân Hòa, being a peri-urban area, has the physical environment advantage. The village has rivers, is closely located to Hué city and their infrastructure is being improved. The livelihoods and opportunities available to households in peri-urban areas and along the coastline cannot be compared to those in the interior and far outward areas. These findings may not therefore apply to households outside the study area or region. The findings from the coping strategies, although clearly defined, may to some extent be limiting. An absence of significant dominance in the variables, makes it difficult to measure the significance of some of the strategies. However, the significant role assets play in all the coping strategies is important to mention. Literature from related studies [2] suggest that decreasing ones physical and/or natural capital can have severe consequences 28 The effect of household size, age and food security are in line to other studies such as the study of Bashir et al. (2012). 665
14. and devastating effects for future households livelihoods, thus, making those households more prone to food insecurity and unsustainable livelihoods. The outcomes on household livelihoods also requires careful consideration due to the monthly household food expenditures since this study did not include the costs of home grown food consumption in relation to the food expenditure. Although the assumption for the model was that the shocks are from outside and man-made, land conversion by the government and private sector, some caution has to be paid to the context of illness. Illness may occur due to food poising, overwork or due to the members of the household not eating well. Due to the variety of effects on illness, in particular by not eating well, makes the endogeneity questionable. 5. Concluding remarks Despite increasing agricultural productivity, the livelihoods of many households in Thuy Van Commune are under severe pressure. This group mainly consists of landless households and people who do not have enough land and access to viable nonfarm activities to attain food and livelihood security. To conclude, land conversion does not necessarily have to affect food security. Food security gets affected by unfair compensation packages (under land market prices) combined with the farmers spending it all on materialistic items. This will lead to food insecurity on the long term, if the affected household will not look for opportunities outside the agrarian sector and commune. Food insecurity on the short term is caused by acquiring land but forestalling the compensation payment, in which the affected farmers are left with no land and no compensation. Although informed consent procedures were followed, the people involved did not fully understand the implications of the compensation in terms of money, land or the acquisition of a resettlement house. In order to really help the poor and the most vulnerable, training programs are strongly needed so the farmers can obtain new skills. However, for the elderly, job conversion is difficult because they will face age discrimination on the job market. There is a growing and young labour force, with whom the elderly have to compete and they should not be forgotten. Furthermore, the voice-lessness of the farmers is a problem. There is a lack of transparent information systems regarding land conversion and there is the lack of chances to discuss the compensation packages. The farmers feel that they are not being heard which increases the resentment of the land conversion process. By giving the villagers means to participate in the process, the farmers will become active citizens instead of passive victims. Researchers still often think in stereotypes. We often presume that farmers want to remain farmers, while there are many people, especially young people, who no longer want to be famers and are open to other opportunities, rather than sticking to their land. Also this study showed that many people did not perceive it a problem to be engaged in activities other than those which they were used to, unless these changes were enforced on them or if they were not adequately compensated. A precondition for progress is to assert the right of the poor to the city but also to the countryside. Compensation needs to be done fair by given equivalent land back or by using market mechanisms. However, compensation plots 666
15. are usually situated at large distance from urban centres and you can never provide compensation for e.g. social relations. Therefore, it is important to bridge the urban and rural divide and explore linkages between the two. Land pooling is seen as an alternative to land acquisition29. Land pooling differs from conventional land acquisition in the sense that land, not money, is the primary medium of exchange. From the state’s perspective, land pooling is often beneficial because it is voluntary, and less expensive as there are no large outflows of cash compensation needed. However, challenges and problems pertaining to land pooling remain. These can include that the farmers face problems in delays in returning the developed land, while it is not clear what they will do in the meantime or that the location of land returned is a problem, for instance when remote land of lesser value is returned. Land acquisition has mainly been considered a rural issue, but this perception has shifted gradually. As urban spaces spread out, rural spaces are becoming urban. Movements of people and goods demonstrate these linkages. It is crucial to take into account that urbanization will always go hand in hand with land transformation in rural as well as urban areas. As Professor Mohammad Yunus states ‘Poverty is not created by poor people. It is created by the system that we have built, the institutions that we have designed, and the concepts that we have formulated’30. There is an urgent need for ‘reinterpretation and recasting of concepts of good life and good economy’.31 There is space for citizens’ imagining of a better future. This ‘social economy’ is an economy which contributes to an improved quality of life for all people (the ‘common good’) rather than only for a privileged few. REFERENCES Asian Development Bank (ADB) (1998), Handbook on resettlement, a guide to good practise. Asian Development Bank, Manila, the Philippines. Bashir, M.K., Schilizzi, S. and Pandit, R. (2012), The determinants of rural household food security in the Punjab, Pakistan: an econometric analysis, Working Paper 1203, School of Agricultural and Resource Economics, University of Western Australia, Crawley, Australia. Chambers, R. & Conway, G.R. (1991), Sustainable rural livelihoods: practical concepts for the 21st century. IDS discussion paper 296. Available at: Corbett, J. (1988), Famine and household coping strategies, World Development, 16: 1099- 1112. 29 Pawar, M. (2016). LANDac conference workshop on land acquisition. ‘In the case of land pooling, landowners voluntarily surrender their land to an agency or government body which develops the land. Subsequently, the agency or government body returns a smaller portion of the land to the original owners, since the plot now has more amenities and its price has increased’. 30 Yunus, M. (2016). www.muhammadyunus.org/index.php/news-media/articles-by-professor-yunus 31 PM Bhutan: World Leader Forum Colombia University, 2010. www.worldleaders.columbia.edu/events 667
16. Department for International Development (DFID) (2012), Land use, Food security, and climate change in Viet Nam, Available at: 2012/01/Land-Use-Food-Security-Climate-in-Vietnam-Policy-Brief.pdf Finnis E. (2006), Why grow cash crops? Subsistence farming and crop commercialization in the Kolli Hills, South India, American Anthropologist, 108 (2): 363–369 General Statistics Office of Vietnam (GSO) (2016), Available at Global Rice Science Partnership (GRiSP) (2013), Performance monitoring report, Research programme on rice, Available at 10947/4168/GRiSP%20annual%20report%202014.pdf?sequence=1 Long, H.H. (2012) Modernizing the nation's infrastructure to 2020, Vietnam Economic News. Available at: to2020_t77c340n26587tn.aspx Nguyen Quang Phuc (2015), Fair urbanization or urban land grab? Land acquisition and sustainable development in Hue, Viet Nam, Eburon. Nguyen Quang Phuc, Van Westen, A.C.M. & Zoomers, A. (2014). Agricultural land for urban development: The process of land conversion in Central Vietnam. Available at Ty, P. H.; Van Westen, A.C.M. & Zoomers, A. (2013), Compensation and Resettlement Policies after Compulsory Land Acquisition for Hydropower Development in Viet Nam: Policy and Practice, Available at doi: 10.3390/ land2040678. Vietnam, grain and feed annual (VGFA) (2014). Grain report. Available at 0Ann ual_Hanoi_Vietnam_4-8-2014.pdf Webster, D. (2004), Urbanization Dynamics and Policy Frameworks in Developing East Asia, World Bank Paper, Available at: INTEAPREGTOPURBDEV/ Resources /Urbanization-Dynamics2004.pdf Young, H., Jaspars, S. Brown, R., Frize, J. and Khogali, H. (2001), Food insecurity assessment in emergencies: A livelihood approach. Westminster Bridge Road London United Kingdom. 36 pp. 668