In 2022, an average of 735 million people lived with hunger worldwide, an increase of 122 million since 2019, advances the report on the State of Food and Nutrition Security of the Organization published this Wednesday by five specialized United Nations agencies. United. Several factors contribute to this problem: from the Covid-19 pandemic and climate change, to armed conflicts, such as the war in Ukraine.
The UN warns that, if the trends continue, the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) of eradicating hunger by 2030 will not be achieved. Although there are still seven years to go, current values do not augur an encouraging scenario.
The accounts, which compare the period before and after the pandemic, show that, while in Asia and Latin America there has been “progress in reducing hunger”, in Western Asia, the Caribbean and in all subregions of Africa, the The situation worsened in 2022. The African continent remains the most affected region, with “one in five people suffering from hunger on the continent, more than double the global average.”
“There are hopeful signs, some regions are on track to meet some nutrition targets by 2030. But overall, we need an intense and immediate global effort to achieve the SDGs. This will lead to food insecurity, from conflict to climate change.” the United Nations said. Secretary General Antonio Guterres.
The report on the State of Food Security and Nutrition is signed by the heads of five United Nations agencies, including UNICEF, the World Health Organization, the World Food Programme, the International Fund for Agricultural Development and the United Nations. United for Food and Agriculture. For the representatives of these institutions, exceeding the goal of eradicating hunger by 2030 represents “a challenge of enormous proportions.”
“Almost 600 million people are projected to remain hungry in 2030. The main drivers of food insecurity and malnutrition are our new normal and we have no choice but to redouble our efforts to transform agri-food systems and harness them to achieve the goals of the SDG 2,” they wrote.
The food security and nutrition situation was also grim in 2022. The report concludes that close to 30% of the world’s population lacked continuous access to food. In addition, 148 million children under the age of five suffered from chronic malnutrition and 37 million were overweight.
Living in rural or urban areas makes a difference in the lives of populations, with child malnutrition being higher in rural areas, while overweight is more prevalent in urban areas.
Source: TSF
