Food Insecurity and Intimate Partner Violence among Rural Women, Minia, Egypt

Background: Food insecurity and violence exposure are evolving public health problems
among women worldwide including Egypt. Food insecurity is one of the household
stressors which may be linked to intimate partner violence (IPV), which is often
underreported, spuriously affecting the magnitude of these relationships. Objective: To
determine the prevalence of IPV, and its interlink with food insecurity. Method: A
comparative cross-sectional study was conducted among a representative sample of
Egyptian households from a rural area in Upper Egypt during 2018. The study included
380 married women; their age ranged from 19 to 35 years. Interviewer-administered
questionnaire was used to collect the data on socioeconomic status and violence exposure.
Household Food Insecurity Access Scale (HFIAS) was administered. Results: About one
fourth of studied women reported violence exposure. Approximately 70 % of women in
the study reported food insecurity, with 15.3%, 37.4% and 17.1% reporting mild,
moderate and severe food insecurity respectively. Results of multivariate logistic
regression showed that food insecurity, women’s education and husband’s occupation
were predictors of IPV. Women from food insecure households were 4 times more likely
to experience IPV than their counterparts in food secure households (95% CI= 2.03-9.25).
Conclusion: being food insecure puts women at greater risk of IPV exposure perpetrated
by their husbands. Policy maker should improve national food security programs.
Interventions to empower women socially and economically is also recommended.