The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2017

The flagship report,"The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2017" was launched on the 15th of September 2017 at FAO headquarters by FAO,IFAD, WFP, UNICEF and WHO, which marked an expanded partnership than the previous years.

The major finding of the report is that after a prolonged decline, estimates indicate that global hunger increased in 2016 and affected 815 million people, and in some parts of the world hunger levels rose sharply - for example, with a famine declared in areas such as South Sudan in early 2017 and will alerts issued in northeast Nigeria, Somalia and Yemen.

The failure to reduce hunger is attributed to the increase in conflicts and violence in several parts of the world as noted above. The report shows that there is a nexus between peace, conflict, food security and nutrition.

This edition marks the beginning of the process to monitor the progress towards achieving a world without hunger and malnutrition within the framework of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The report monitors progress towards ending hunger (SDG Target 2.1) and all forms of malnutrition (SDG Target 2.2). To end hunger and malnutrition by 2030 there is a need to address all the factors that undermine food security and nutrition - which includes the SDG 16.

Some of the key messages

The following are some of the highlights of the report:-

• After a prolonged decline, world hunger  appears to be on the rise again. The estimated number of undernourished people increased to 815 million in 2016, up from 777 million in 2015.
• Much of the recent increase in food insecurity can be traced to the greater number of conflicts, often exacerbated by climate-related shocks.
• Even in some peaceful settings, food security has deteriorated as economic  slowdowns challenge access to food for the poor.
• The worrying trend in undernourishment is not yet reflected in levels of chronic child malnutrition (stunting), which continue to fall – but at a slower rate in several regions.
• Despite the decline, in 2016 stunting still affected one out of four children under the age of five years, or 155 million children. In some regions, stunting affects one-third of children under five.
• Wasting continues to threaten the lives of almost 52 million children (8 percent).
• Almost one-third (33 percent) of women of reproductive age worldwide suffer from anaemia, which also puts the nutrition and health of many children at risk.
• Child overweight and adult obesity are on the rise, including in low- and middle-income countries.
• Multiple forms of malnutrition are coexisting, with countries experiencing simultaneously high rates of child undernutrition and adult obesity

The publication, which is the result of a collaboration between FAO, IFAD, UNICEF, WFP and WHO, is a first step towards a comprehensive global analysis of the links between food security and nutrition.

Please visit the following website to download the full report or a summary in the language of your preference: http://www.fao.org/state-of-food-security-nutrition.