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Number of people suffering from hunger increasing, UN report
News:
- UN has released report, “The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World” to highlight undernutrition and hunger in the world.
Important Facts:
2. The report has been jointly prepared by UN International Fund for Agricultural Development, World Food Programme, World Health Organisation and UN Children Fund.
3. Key Findings
- Hunger- starved people climbed 8 year high since 2009 to 821 million in 2017.
- Under nutrition and food insecurity increased since 2014 in all parts of Europe and North America.
- Hunger is worse in countries where agriculture is highly sensitive to severe drought and where high share of population depends on farming.
- Conflict in nations like Yemen and economic crises in countries like Venezuela have restricted people’s access to food.
- 151 million children aged under 5 are stunted due to malnutrition in 2017, compared to 165 million in 2012.
- Globally, Africa and Asia accounted for 39% and 55% of all stunted children, respectively.
- One in three women of reproductive age globally is affected by anaemia and no region has shown a decline in this.
- Less than half ( 40.7%) of the percentage of infants aged below 6 months were exclusively breastfed.
- Adult obesity is worsening and is more significant in North America, but Africa and Asia are also experiencing an upward trend.
4. Key drivers behind the rise in hunger:
- Climate variability affecting rainfall patterns and agricultural seasons.
- Climate extremes such as droughts and floods where high share of population depends on farming.
- Conflicts and economic slowdown in countries.
- Difficulty in sourcing nutritious food resulting in obesity.
5. Way Forward:
- Urgent local and global action to address the multiple forms of malnutrition to achieve Sustainable Development Goal (SDG 2 ) of Zero Hunger by 2030.
- Leaders must redouble efforts to cut the use of fossil fuels
- Commit funds to help poor countries adapt to climate crises.
- Policies must pay special attention to vulnerable groups like infants, school-aged children, and women.
- Sustainable shift towards nutrition-sensitive agriculture.