IMPACT OF WOMEN EMPOWERMENT ON FOOD SECURITY AMONG RURAL HOUSEHOLDS IN KWARA STATE, NIGERIA

The study investigated the impact of women empowerment on food security in Kwara State, Nigeria. Specifically, the study assessed the levels of food security and women empowerment in the study area as well as examined the relationship between both. Also, constraints on women empowerment in the study area were identified. An interview schedule was used to elicit data from 150 rural households across ten communities in the State following a three-stage random sampling technique. Descriptive statistics, Likert scale, women empowerment index, food security index and the Pearson Product Moment Correlation were the analytical tools used. The study revealed that 52% of the households were food- secure. Only 5% of the women in the study area had empowerment index higher than 0.6, with most having least scores for psychological indicators of empowerment levels. A positive correlation (r=0.245) was observed at p