The United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development covers 17 goals, the second of which is “zero hunger”, namely: End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture. (Click here for details)

Under this major goal, there are eight targets, the second of which is “By 2030, end all forms of malnutrition, including achieving, by 2025, the internationally agreed targets on stunting and wasting in children under 5 years of age, and address the nutritional needs of adolescent girls, pregnant and lactating women and older persons.”

●  Current Situation

About the World

Global Undernourished Population Continues to Increase

About 821 million people were undernourished in 2017, the same number as in 2010. The prevalence of undernourishment has remained virtually unchanged in the past three years at a level slightly below 11 per cent. Updated figures on undernourishment, food insecurity and malnutrition will be released in The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2019 (July 2019).

The situation deteriorated significantly in sub-Saharan Africa, where the number of undernourished people increased from 195 million in 2014 to 237 million in 2017. Sub-Saharan Africa remains the region with the highest prevalence of hunger, with the rate increasing from 20.7 per cent in 2014 to 23.2 per cent in 2017. In South America, the situation also appears to be worsening. This may be the result of an economic slowdown, which reduced fiscal capacity to protect the most vulnerable against rising domestic prices and loss of income. Adverse weather conditions affecting food availability and prices, and prolonged armed conflicts, are among the key drivers of these trends.

Chronic undernutrition or stunting—defined as inadequate height for age—puts children at an increased risk of dying from common infections. Stunting is also associated with poor cognitive development, which can have a negative impact on a country’s long-term progress. Since 2000, the proportion of stunted children has been declining; however, 149 million children under 5 years of age—22 percent of the global under-5 population—were still chronically undernourished in 2018. Three quarters of those children live in Southern Asia (39 percent) and sub-Saharan Africa (36 percent). More intensive efforts are needed to meet the target of bringing the number of stunted children down to 100 million by 2025 and 83 million by 2030.

In 2018, 49 million children under 5 years of age—7.3 percent of the global under-5 population—suffered from acute undernutrition, or wasting (low weight for height), a condition generally caused by limited nutrient intake and infection. Over half of children with wasting live in Southern Asia. The global wasting rate in 2018 remained well above the 5 percent global target for 2025 and the 3 percent target for 2030.

Source: un.org

About China

China’s Hidden Hunger Population Has Declined Sharply

In the past few decades, China has made remarkable achievements in solving the problem of undernutrition. For example, the proportion of stunted children dropped from 18% in 2000 to 8% in 2013. The focus of the national food safety policy has always been to ensure the self-sufficiency rate of the staple grains, but the improvement of the micronutrient content in food has gained sufficient attention.

By 2019, the number of people suffering from hidden hunger in China has decreased significantly, mainly in rural areas and remote areas in the west. Because of the single diet structure, underdeveloped market, weak infrastructure and other reasons, it is difficult for those people to obtain food diversified in nutrition and variety. Urban residents tend to eat more meat, sugar, salt, fat, refined grains and processed foods, but the diversity of food is insufficient, especially the intake of beans, coarse grains, vegetables and fruits.

The priority of agricultural R & D in China should be shifted from staple grain and self-sufficiency to production of healthy, nutritious, tasty, high-yield and affordable food. Through innovation of policies, systems and technologies, the nutrition and health level of the whole nation should be comprehensively improved.

(5ajob.com)

Text Source: Science and Technology Daily

●  Cases

About the World

Undernutrition in Africa Remains Severe

The latest report “Global Hunger Index 2019” released by the International Food Policy Research Institute shows that among the 117 countries surveyed, sub-Saharan Africa has the largest increase in undernourished populations. According to the report, hunger levels in 47 countries in Africa are “serious” or “alarming”, the situation in Chad, Madagascar, Yemen and Zambia is worrisome, and the level of hunger in the Central African Republic is particularly severe.

China is a sincere friend of African countries in dealing with hunger. Over the years, China has taken the initiative to share science and technology related to food security, helping African countries achieve the goal of  “zero hunger” as soon as possible. As of 2016, China has helped more than 50 African countries implement nearly 500 agricultural assistance projects, involving agricultural planting, grain storage, agricultural machinery, farmland irrigation and agricultural product processing. China’s assistance has also been widely praised. China-Africa cooperation will help Africa achieve “zero hunger”  at an early date.

In Madagascar, hybrid rice from China has been rooted for more than 10 years, which has been greatly improving local food security. After more than 10 years of development, Madagascar has become the country with the largest planting area and the highest yield of hybrid rice in Africa, and the first to achieve the development of industry chain on hybrid rice.

A demonstration field of hybrid rice in Madagascar. (Source: rednet.cn)

Text Source: People's Daily Online

About China

Shenzhen Children’s Nutrition Education Project Has Achieved Fruitful Results in Five Years

Shenzhen children’s nutrition education project has been running for five years. After intervention, the proportion of carbonated drinks and sweets in Shenzhen Children’s snacks has decreased significantly. In addition, milk, dairy products, vegetables and fruits rank first and second among the snacks that parents often buy.

Since the start of implementation of Shenzhen children’s nutrition education project in 2015, it has covered 116 schools, more than 68,000 primary school students and their parents. In 2020, the project is expected to benefit more than 45,000 primary school students and their parents.

Source: shenzhen.sina.com.cn

●  Background

Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Initiated by the United Nations

On January 1, 2016, the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including 169 targets, of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development — adopted by world leaders in September 2015 at an historic UN Summit — officially came into force. Countries will mobilize efforts to end all forms of poverty, fight inequalities and tackle climate change, while ensuring that no one is left behind.