Food and Economic Rights:
This strategic direction promotes food security of poor and marginalized people, especially women and children. Food security exists when all people, at all times, have physical and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life. It also requires an available and reliable food supply at all times.
Global evidence and findings from CEDO’s own research suggest that improving the economic stability of vulnerable households enhances their food security; translating into better material well-being for OVC and their households. Besides, greater economic stability enables parents and guardians to cover school costs, pay transport fees to get to health clinics, provide needed nutrition, and make home improvements. CEDO-Uganda’s economic strengthening interventions include village savings and loan Associations (VSLAs) to market-linked strategies that move families along an upward continuum of economic growth and stability. Moreover, CEDO-Uganda’s food security strategy integrates savings mobilization with life skills development, financial literacy, entrepreneurship, and basic business planning and management skills. CEDO-Uganda also helps participating families engage in collective marketing of their produce to enable smallholders to offset material input costs through bulking, and consequently increase profit margins.