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Household Consumption and Natural Disasters: The Case of Hurricane Mitch in Nicaragua

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  • van den Berg, Marrit
  • Burger, Kees

Abstract

This paper analyses coping strategies and consumption reactions of rural households in Nicaragua to hurricane Mitch, which caused massive losses in especially the agricultural sector in 1998. A switching-regression model confirms theoretical considerations which indicate that responses to transitory incomes depend on wealth. Asset-poor households do and asset-rich households do not adjust their consumption to transitory income changes.

Suggested Citation

  • van den Berg, Marrit & Burger, Kees, 2008. "Household Consumption and Natural Disasters: The Case of Hurricane Mitch in Nicaragua," 2008 International Congress, August 26-29, 2008, Ghent, Belgium 44380, European Association of Agricultural Economists.
    • Handle: RePEc:ags:eaae08:44380
    DOI: 10.22004/ag.econ.44380
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Sirikarn Lertamphainont & Robert Sparrow, 2016. "The Economic Impacts of Extreme Rainfall Events on Farming Households: Evidence from Thailand," PIER Discussion Papers 45, Puey Ungphakorn Institute for Economic Research.
    2. Claus C Pörtner, 2010. "Natural Hazards and Child Health," Working Papers UWEC-2010-03, University of Washington, Department of Economics.
    3. Yin, Zhichao & Yan, Yu & Chen, Xirong & Liu, Taixing, 2022. "Earthquake and household energy consumption – Evidence from the Wenchuan earthquake in China," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 111(C).
    4. van den Berg, Marrit, 2010. "Household income strategies and natural disasters: Dynamic livelihoods in rural Nicaragua," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 69(3), pages 592-602, January.

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    Keywords

    Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety; Resource /Energy Economics and Policy;

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