Global Hunger Report 2023: Setbacks and Challenges in Eradicating Hunger

Global Hunger Report 2023: A Setback in the Fight Against Hunger

The international community is currently facing a significant setback in its efforts to eradicate hunger by the year 2030, as highlighted in the latest report from the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations. The findings reveal a stark reality: approximately 733 million people were affected by hunger in 2023, equating to one in every eleven individuals globally, and a staggering one in five in Africa.

This alarming situation has regressed by approximately 15 years, with levels of undernourishment now reminiscent of those observed in 2008-2009. According to Maximo Torero, the Chief Economist at FAO, “Between 713 million and 757 million people are suffering from chronic malnutrition and facing hunger. That’s the equivalent of one in 11 people going hungry in the world.”

The report also highlights significant regional disparities in hunger trends:

• Africa: Hunger rates are sharply increasing.
• Latin America: A similar trend of rising hunger is observed.
• Asia: The situation remains relatively stable.

Torero noted, “South America has highly developed social protection programs that enable them to target interventions effectively, allowing them to escape hunger very rapidly.” In contrast, he pointed out that “We haven’t seen that in Africa. We have found that they still do not possess the institutional capacity to deliver a well-targeted social protection program.”

In a poignant visual representation of the ongoing crisis, women were seen sharing peas during a food aid distribution event in the Mangwe district of southwestern Zimbabwe on March 22, 2024.

The report underscores that food insecurity and malnutrition are deteriorating due to a confluence of factors, including persistent food price inflation, ongoing conflicts, the adverse impacts of climate change, and economic downturns. The FAO warns that if current trends continue unabated, an estimated 582 million people will experience chronic malnutrition by 2030, with half of this population residing in Africa.

Furthermore, the report emphasizes that access to adequate food remains a formidable challenge for billions worldwide. In 2023, approximately 2.33 billion people faced moderate to severe food insecurity, a statistic that has shown little improvement since a sharp increase following the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. The lack of affordable access to healthy diets remains a critical issue, affecting more than a third of the global population.