Five United Nations agencies have released the latest report on global nutrition and the state of food security. The report showed that about 733 million people suffered from hunger in 2023, equivalent to one in 11 people in the world and one in five people in Africa.
Although some progress has been made in specific areas such as reducing stunting and increasing rates of exclusive breastfeeding, a significant number of people remain food insecure and malnourished, with global hunger levels holding steady for the third year in a row. 733 million people suffered from undernutrition in 2023 – an increase of 152 million from a year earlier. 2019. Regional trends witnessed significant variation: in Africa, the proportion of the population facing hunger was high (20.4%) and remained constant in Asia (8.1%), although the Asia region includes more than 50% of those facing hunger in the world. Hunger rates also showed an increase in Latin America (6.2%).
The report made it clear that obtaining adequate food remains difficult for billions of people. In 2023, about 2.33 billion people around the world suffered from moderate or severe food insecurity, a number that has not changed much since it witnessed a sharp rise in 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic. Of these, more than 864 million people suffered from severe food insecurity, meaning they went an entire day, or sometimes longer, without eating any food. This number has remained high since 2020, and despite the improvement witnessed in Latin America, greater challenges remain, especially in Africa, where 58% of the population suffers from moderate or severe food insecurity.
The report warns that the world is still very far from achieving Goal 2 of the Sustainable Development Goals, which is to eliminate hunger by 2030. The report also shows that the world has set back 15 years, with levels of undernourishment reaching rates close to what they were during the period 2008. -2009. If trends continue, about 582 million people, half of them in Africa, will suffer from chronic undernutrition in 2030. These levels are similar to those recorded in 2015 when the Sustainable Development Goals were adopted, indicating a worrying stagnation in progress. Dietary health is a critical issue affecting more than one-third of the world's population. More than 2.8 billion people were unable to afford a healthy diet in 2022. 71.5% of the population were unable to afford a healthy diet, compared to 6.3% in high-income countries. The number in Asia, North America, and Europe has decreased from the levels that prevailed. Before the pandemic, while there was a significant rise in Africa
Obesity has risen sharply over the past decade, rising from 12.1% in 2012 to 15.8% in 2022. More than 1.2 billion adults will suffer from obesity by 2030. The double burden of malnutrition – the prevalence of undernutrition In conjunction with the prevalence of overweight and obesity - it has witnessed a significant rise globally and among all age groups. The percentage of thinness and underweight has decreased in the past two decades, while... These trends highlight the complex challenges resulting from malnutrition in its various forms and the urgent need to address it at a time when the world is deviating from the path that leads to achieving any of the seven global nutrition targets by 2030.
Food insecurity and malnutrition are worsening due to a combination of factors, including persistent food price inflation, which continues to undermine economic gains for many people in many countries. Regional conflicts, climate change, and economic downturns are becoming more frequent and severe, as are healthy diets. unaffordability, unhealthy food environments, and persistent inequality