Enhancing Food Security Interventions to Alleviate Malnutrition Among School-Age Children in Ethiopia: A Cross-Sectional Analysis

Food security interventions have been shown to improve nutritional status in children globally, yet their effectiveness varies by region and context. A cross-sectional analysis was conducted using data from a nationally representative sample of Ethiopian schools, including prevalence rates for stunting and wasting according to the World Health Organisation (WHO) criteria. The analysis revealed that food security interventions significantly reduced malnutrition rates by 15% in comparison to control groups, with stunting dropping from 28% to 19%, and wasting decreasing from 10% to 4%. Despite the positive findings, further longitudinal studies are recommended to assess sustained impacts. Implementing comprehensive food security programmes alongside nutritional education in schools can contribute to reducing malnutrition among school-age children in Ethiopia. Food Security Interventions, Malnutrition, School-Age Children, Cross-Sectional Analysis, Ethiopia Treatment effect was estimated with $\text{logit}(p_i)=\beta_0+\beta^\top X_i$, and uncertainty reported using confidence-interval based inference.