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Quantitative data analysis Toolbox

6.2 List of indicators

Group Indicator Questions on survey form
Demographics Head of household gender What is the sex of the head of household?
Demographics Head of household age What is the age of the head of household?
Demographics Household size What is the total number of household members?
Demographics Household composition¹ What is the sex of the household member?What is the age of the household member (years)? Is the household member currently pregnant?
Household needs Access to basic needs Which of your household’s basic needs can you not afford?
Household needs Access to improved WASH services 1 What is the principal source of drinking water for members of your household?
2 Where do you and your household members (excluding children under 5) usually go to defecate?
Food Security Access to food assistance Does your household receive food assistance (general in-kind food distribution and/or cash grants and/or food vouchers)?
Food Security Food assistance coverage How many days did the food from the general food distribution from the last cycle of food assistance last?
Food Security Access to food assistance Why do you not have access to the local food assistance programmes?
Food Security Reduced coping strategies index (rCSI)² 1 In the past 7 days, how many days did your household rely on less preferred and/or less expensive food due to lack of food or money to buy food?
2 In the past 7 days, how many days did your household borrow food or rely on help from a friend or relative due to lack of food or money to buy food?
3 In the past 7 days, how many days did your household reduce the number of meals eaten in a day due to lack of food or money to buy food?
4 In the past 7 days, how many days did your household limit portion sizes at mealtime due to lack of food or money to buy food?
5 In the past 7 days, how many days did your household reduce consumption by adults so children could eat, due to lack of food or money to buy food?
Food Security Food consumption score (FCS)³ 1 In the past 7 days, how many days did your household eat any wheat, corn/maize or any foods made from these such as bread, ugali?
2 In the past 7 days, how many days did your household eat any dried beans, chickpeas, lentils, nuts, seeds or any foods made from these such as hummus, peanut butter?
3 In the past 7 days, how many days did your household eat any fresh milk, sour milk, infant formula, cheese, kefir, yogurt?
4 In the past 7 days, how many days did your household eat any meat, fish and eggs (e.g. goat, beef, chicken, pork, blood, fish including canned tuna, snails, and/or other seafood, eggs)?
5 In the past 7 days, how many days did your household eat any vegetables and leaves locally available (e.g. spinach, cassava leaves, onion, carrot, lettuce, bamboo shoots, cabbage, pepper, tomato, eggplant, zucchini, etc.)?
6 In the past 7 days, how many days did your household eat any any fruits locally available including wild fruits), and 100% fruit juice made from these (e.g. mango, apricot, peach, apple, avocados, banana, coconut flesh, lemon, orange, etc.)?
7 In the past 7 days, how many days did your household eat any oils and fats locally available added to food or used for cooking (e.g. vegetable / nut oil made from almond, avocado, canola, coconut, cottonseed, groundnut, maize, olive, rapeseed, safflower, sesame, soybean, sunflower/walnut, ghee, butter, margarine, mayonnaise, palm oil - not red palm oil, shortenings, sour cream)?
8 In the past 7 days, how many days did your household eat any sweets, sweetened soda or juice drinks and sugary foods locally available (e.g. sugar, honey, syrup, soda drinks, chocolates, candies, cookies, sweet biscuits and cakes)?
9 In the past 7 days, how many days did your household eat any spices, condiments and beverages locally available (e.g. black pepper, salt, chilies, soy sauce, hot sauce, fish powder, fish sauce, ginger, herbs, magi cubes, ketchup, mustard, coffee, tea, milk/cream in small quantities)?
Food Security Food source 1 How was this food acquired?
2 Is someone from your household able to access a reliable market for food items within a 15-minute walk of your current dwelling?

As commonly used in the humanitarian sector, household members can be defined as ‘people eating from the same pot’.

¹ : The questions will be included for each household member.

² : The Reduced Coping Strategies Index (rCSI) is a proxy indicator of household food insecurity. It considers both the frequency and severity of five pre-selected coping strategies that the household used in the seven days prior to the survey. It is a simplified version of the full Coping Strategies Index indicator (source: Indikit). The reduced coping strategy index is calculated by multiplying the frequency of the strategy in the last seven days by the severity of that coping strategy. The total per household is then calculated by then adding up all the assessed strategies.

³ : The Food Consumption Score (FCS) is a more complex indicator of a household’s food security status, considering not only dietary diversity and food frequency but also the relative nutritional importance of different food groups (source: Indikit). The FCS is calculated by asking respondents how many times in the past 7-days they have eaten 16 types of foods (based on WfP guidelines). The consumption frequencies of foods belonging to the same food groups is multiplied by the weighted food group scores, which are an assessment of importance of the different food groups according to nutritional guidelines. The totals of each food group are then summed, to calculate the total FCS. The final value of the FCS indicators whether a household FCS score is considered “Poor” (0-21), “Borderline (21.5-35), or “acceptable” (35.5 and above). Please note: the thresholds are not valid in all contexts and may need to be modified based on dietary patterns of the target population.