The Influence of Educational Level on Sources of Income and Household Food Security in Alice, Eastern Cape, South Africa

Abstract

Poverty and hunger eradication are the two crucial targets of the Millennium Development Goals(MDGs), especially for rural people to achieve household food security. The study sought to investigate the influence of level of education on income sources and its effect on rural household food security in Alice, EasternCape, South Africa. The population comprised 12,000 people and a sample size of 441 participants was drawn.Cluster sampling was used to select respondents where the population was divided into mutually exclusive groupsand systematic random sampling was then employed within each cluster and the Household Hunger Scale wasconstructed and used to determine how different households sustain their families with income disposition andeducational attainment. The findings revealed that level of education plays a vital role in enhancing householdincome source and food security. The paper recommended effective measures for the government and policymakers,which they can employ in designing policies and strategies to improve household income source through improvedquality of rural education to reduce poverty and food insecurity.