The recent report titled ‘The State of Food Security Nutrition in the World 2021 (SOFI)’ has shed light on the implications of the Covid-19 pandemic on global food security and malnutrition. The report, a collective effort of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the International Fund for Agricultural Development, the United Nations Children’s Fund, the World Food Programme, and the World Health Organization, offers insight into the escalating problems of poverty, reduced livelihoods, and worsening food insecurity.
Impact on Developing & Underdeveloped Countries
The brunt of the Covid-19 pandemic and its resultant influence on food security was borne by almost all low-and middle-income countries. Particularly hard hit were the nations already grappling with climate-related disasters or conflict and economic downturns instigated by pandemic containment measures. Asia, home to more than half of the world’s undernourished population (418 million), and Africa, home to over one-third (282 million), have registered significant increases in hunger. The situation worsened in 2020, with an additional 46 million people in Africa, 57 million in Asia, and about 14 million in Latin America and the Caribbean suffering from hunger compared to 2019.
Likely to Miss SDG Targets
The SOFI report reveals that globally, we are veering off the path to achieving sustainable development goals (SDGs). The targets for eradicating poverty (SDG 1) and hunger (SDG 2) seem increasingly unattainable by 2030. This is evident from the fact that the prevalence of undernourishment (PoU) saw an increase of 1.5 percentage points in just one year after remaining almost stagnant for five years.
Access to Healthy Food: An Escalating Problem
The year 2020 saw an estimated increase of 18% in the number of people facing hunger as compared to 2019, totaling to nearly 11.8 crore more individuals. Job losses and reduced incomes severely impacted people’s affordability for healthy food. Almost one-third of the world population (nearly 3 billion) could not access adequate food in 2020. Various external and internal factors are driving up the cost of nutritious foods, making a healthy diet unaffordable for many.
Gender Disparity in Food Access
The problem of food insecurity also exhibits gender-based inequalities. For every 10 food-insecure men, there were 11 food-insecure women in 2020, up from 10.6 in 2019. Nearly a third of the world’s women of reproductive age suffer from anaemia, further highlighting the gender disparity in food access.
Malnutrition Status in India
In India, the prevalence of undernutrition was 15.3% during 2018-20, a significant improvement from 21.6% during 2004-06 but still higher than the global average of 8.9%. In 2020, about 17.3% of children under five years suffered from wasted growth with low weight for height, the highest among countries. Indian government initiatives like PM Garib Kalyan Ann Yojana (PMGKAY), One Nation One Ration Card, Atmanirbhar Bharat Rozgar Yojana, Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi, and Intensified Mission Indradhanush 3.0 Scheme are aimed at addressing these issues.
Suggestions for a Way Forward
The report suggests integrating humanitarian, development, and peacebuilding policies in conflict areas, scaling up climate resilience across food systems, strengthening the resilience of the most vulnerable to economic adversity, intervening along supply chains to lower the cost of nutritious foods, tackling poverty and structural inequalities, and strengthening food environments and changing consumer behavior as key strategies to transform food systems. The aim is to address the significant drivers of food insecurity and malnutrition and ensure access to affordable healthy diets for all, sustainably and inclusively.