The Impact of Productive Safety Net Programme on Food Security: The Case of Babile District, Somali Regional State, Ethiopia

This Study analyzed the impact of productive safety net programme (PSNP) on household food security status. Multistage stage sampling technique was applied to draw 180 sample respondents considering PSNP participants and non-participants. A survey was conducted to collect primary data from the sampled households. In addition, secondary data were gathered by reviewing relevant documents. Propensity score matching (PSM) technique of impact evaluation preferred to overcome counterfactual problem and selection bias. Analysis results show that PSNP has increased calorie intake by 16.54% (415.26 kilocalories) for participant households. In conclusion, participant households were more likely to be food secured as compared to the non-participant households. The result from the logistic estimator also revealed that participation in PSNP was significantly associated with variables such as sex, education, family size, cultivable land size, house roofing materials, distance from nearest market place and access to improved agricultural inputs. Therefore, such programs should consider the roles of those variables in the selection of participants for desired impact under similar settings. Keywords: Safety Net Program, Impact, Propensity Score Matching, Food Security, Babil