With one in every nine people – or 821 million – in the world undernourished hunger is on the rise again, signalling a reversal of trends after a prolonged decline.
Climate change, high cost of nutritious food and rising obesity are eroding many years of progress in fighting malnutrition and hunger.
As the world marks World Food Day today and dedicates itself to achieving zero hunger by 2030, below are some key facts from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics and Food Agriculture Organization.
Nearly 151 million children under five were affected by stunting in 2017 globally, a nine percent decrease from 165.2 million in 2012.
Wasting continues to affect over 50 million children under five in the world and these children are at an increased risk of sickness and death. Furthermore, over 38 million children under five are overweight, with a quarter of that number living in Africa.
About three million women of reproductive age in Kenya suffer from anaemia, with significant health and development consequences for both women and their children.
Actions need to be accelerated and scaled up to strengthen resilience and adaptive capacity of food systems, people’s livelihoods, and nutrition in response to climate variability and extremes.
Source: Nation
