The 2012 Tanzania Food Security Assessment builds on the current knowledge base
regarding the level of food security and vulnerability in Tanzania. The report’s findings are
based on household level data generated from the 2008-09 and 2010-11 Tanzania National
Panel Surveys (NPS). The purpose of the study was to use household-level panel data
generated by the NPS to track households’ food security over the two-year period. In doing
so, this assessment aims to provide meaningful baseline information about food insecurity
in Tanzania.
The NPS interviewed a total of 3,265 households in phase 1 (October 2008 to September
2009) and 3,846 households in phase 2 (October 2010 to September 2011) across Tanzania.
As it was a panel study, the same households were surveyed in both phases. In each phase,
households provided information about their expenditures; food security; assets and
livelihoods; nutrition; farming practices; and, impact of recent economic and other shocks.
These data were used to construct a variety of indicators for measuring food security; these
data are aligned to the eight geographic zones captured by the Demographic and Health
Survey (DHS)