Attachments
Overview and Methodology
In 2022, Sri Lanka faced an unprecedented economic crisis, coupled with high inflation, soaring prices, unfavourable harvests and depleted foreign reserves which resulted in a substantial impact on food security. This resulted in 28 percent of the population estimated to be food insecure, according to the WFPFAO Joint Crop and Food Security Assessment Mission (CFSAM - May 2022).
In 2023, WFP and FAO jointly conducted a second CFSAM in March 2023, where a significant improvement in food security was noted, with 17 percent of the population estimated to be food insecure. This 11-percentage point decrease is attributed to better food consumption due to reduced prices and improved income during the harvesting period.
Between August and October 2023, WFP conducted a panel survey of 8,741 households that were interviewed in March through a face-to-face data collection approach to produce representative estimates at national and regional levels. The survey employed a 2-stage stratified cluster sampling methodology in which a fixed number of primary sampling units (PSUs) were randomly selected at the first stage and within each PSU, 10 households were selected for interview.
This preliminary report provides an update on the overall food security situation since March 2023, and it comes as part of WFP’s efforts to expand its evidence generation initiatives to inform the response among government and humanitarian/development partners in Sri Lanka.