FAO report 2018
What it takes to stop malnutrition?
Building Climate Resilience for Food Security and Nutrition
FAO’s 2018 report on Food Security and Nutrition in the World is out, and its key message is alarming. In 2017 the number of undernourished people is estimated to have increase to 821 million – around one out of every nine people in the world suffers from hunger. After a prolonged decline over the past years, the rise in world hunger is bad news.
These are some of the key messages:
Some progress has been achieved in reducing child stunting, but with nearly 151 million children under five (or over 22 percent) being affected, levels remain unacceptably high.
Wasting continues to affect over 50 million children under five, and these children are at risk of morbidity and mortality. Furthermore, over 38 million children under five are overweight.
Obesity among adults continues to be likewise strong. More than one in eight adults (or more than 672 million) is obese. Like in the years before, undernutrition, overweight and obesity coexist in many countries.
Food insecurity contributes to undernutrition, as well as overweight and obesity. Food insecure families have a higher risk of overweight and obesity due to the higher cost of nutritious foods, the stress of living with food insecurity and physiological adaptations to food restriction.
Climate variability and exposure to climate extremes are threatening to erode and reverse gains made in ending hunger and malnutrition.
The report explores the links between the rise of malnutrition and the adverse effects of the climate change. Alongside conflict, climate change is among the key drivers behind the recent uptick in global hunger. Extreme weather events undermine adaptive capacity and resilience of the food systems, leading to impaired nutrient quality and associated health risks.
The analysis ultimately points to guidance on how the key challenges brought about by climate variability and extremes can be overcome, if we are serious about ending hunger and malnutrition by 2030.
Faster and scaled up responses are needed. That involves increased partnerships, more funding for the disaster risk reduction, and adaptation to the climate change on a variety of the time-scopes.