Food Insecurity Experience Scale (FIES)

This indicator is primarily used by FAO for measuring and comparing food insecurity across different countries. It is based on respondents’ experience of food insecurity. Its methodology is very similar to the earlier developed Household Food Insecurity Access Scale (HFIAS); however, compared to HFIAS, it uses a 12-month long recall period and does not measure the frequency of experienced food insecurity.

Since FIES is less suitable for measuring the impact of individual interventions, IndiKit does not provide detailed guidance on its use. Instead, it recommends using the Household Food Insecurity Access Scale (HFIAS) indicator. If you need guidance on FIES’s use, please take advantage of the resources listed below.

1) European Commission's DEVCO recommends to use a similar version of this indicator: "Prevalence of moderate or severe food insecurity in the population, based on the Food Insecurity Experience Scale (FIES)".