São Paulo – There were approximately 36 million malnourished people in the Middle East and North Africa about ten years ago, and there should be 29 million by 2030 in case progress is not made in anti-hunger actions and policies. The rate of malnourished people would drop from 8.3% to 4.7%, according to a report from the World Food Programme and the International Fund for Agricultural Development, issued this Friday (10th) by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
The study shows that in Latin America and the Caribbean, there were 47 million malnourished people between 2005 and 2007. In 2030, the number should be 27 million, in case current policies remain in place. In this case, the malnourishment rate would go from 8.4% to 4%. Worldwide, the latest data indicate that there are 949 million malnourished people in the world, and 15 years from now there should be 653 million, if new policies are not rolled out.
The majority of malnourished persons in the world, 829 million, lived in 60 countries ten years ago. The other 120 million were in 50 countries. The FAO’s report also claims that almost all people in these conditions, 920 million, lived in low- and middle-income countries, mostly in Sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East and North Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, and South and East Asia.
The projection for 2030 considers average Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth of 2.4% per annum. It also accounts for population growth and increasing investment. The GDP increase alone should improve the average diets of populations, causing malnourishment figures to drop, but this does not suffice to eradicate hunger.
FAO estimates that hunger could be eradicated worldwide by 2030 with investments of 239 billion euros a year. “The message of the report is clear: if we adopt a ‘business as usual’ approach, by 2030, we would still have more than 650 million people suffering from hunger,” said FAO director general José Graziano da Silva in presenting the report in Rome. The amount is equivalent to US$ 267 billion per year for the next 15 years. This means 143 euros or US$ 160 a year for each person living in poverty.
The survey outlines investment proposals combined with social protection measures in rural and urban settings. The bulk of investment should come from the private sector, but be coupled with complementary government funding to rural infrastructure projects, transportation, healthcare and education.
The report was prepared for the 3rd International Conference on Financing for Development, slated for July 13th to 16th in Ethiopia. The eradication of hunger by 2030 should be one of the Millennium Development Goals, which should be approved in September this year, during the 70th Session of the General Assembly of the United Nations.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
