The number of people suffering from hunger and malnutrition continues to increase. „Current estimates assume that almost 690 million people, or 8.9 percent of the world’s population, are hungry,“ said several UN organizations today in their annual report on the food situation. This corresponds to an increase of ten million chronically malnourished compared to the previous year.
The report was prepared by the children’s aid organization UNICEF, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Organization for Food and Agriculture (FAO), among others. According to this, an estimated two billion people – a quarter of the world’s population – were affected by „moderate or severe food insecurity“ in 2019. The numbers have increased slightly since 2014.
By 2030, over 840 million people affected
The experts warned that the UN goal of no longer being chronically malnourished by 2030 is likely to be missed. „If the latest trends continue, the number of people affected by hunger will increase to over 840 million by 2030.“
According to the report, children are particularly affected. According to this, in 2019 a good 21 percent of children under the age of five were underdeveloped due to their diet, 6.9 percent were seriously weakened. At the same time, 5.6 percent of those under the age of five were overweight, and adult obesity is increasing in all regions of the world.
Healthy eating often „unaffordable“
According to the report, the affordability of a healthy diet is particularly problematic: „Healthy nutrition is unaffordable for many people, especially for the poor, in all regions of the world.“ According to estimates, a healthy diet costs on average five times as much as a diet that only covers the energy needs of basic food.
In addition to the coronavirus pandemic, the outlook for 2020 is also bleak due to unprecedented locust plagues in East Africa. According to preliminary estimates, the pandemic and the subsequent crisis in 2020 will increase the number of starving people „by between 83 and 132 million people, depending on the scenario of economic growth“.
