Using demographic data to estimate cropped area in highly undernourished countries

Kathryn Grace, University of California, Santa Barbara
Greg Husak, University of California, Santa Barbara

The overwhelming majority of the world's undernourished reside in developing countries. Among these countries Haiti and Guatemala have some of the greatest concentrations of undernourished. The proportion of undernourished may become even greater as both countries are experiencing population growth. One component of a developing country's food production capabilities is the amount of cropped land. Using an area frame sampling approach which employs satellite data of both high and medium resolution in combination with data from demographic surveys, we will develop estimates of the amount of cropped area. Armed with accurate estimates of a country's cropped area international and domestic agencies can develop food import strategies and reduce the likelihood of a famine.