2015 Global Hunger Index: Armed Conflict & The Challenge of Hunger - Gender
Hunger is a multidimensional problem, and a variety of terms are used to describe its different aspects. To reflect the multidimensional nature of hunger, the Global Hunger Index combines the following four component indicators into one index:
1. UNDERNOURISHMENT: the proportion of undernourished people as a percentage of the population (reflecting the share of the population with insufficient caloric intake);
2. CHILD WASTING: the proportion of children under the age of five who suffer from wasting (that is, low weight for their height, reflecting acute undernutrition);
3. CHILD STUNTING: the proportion of children under the age of five who suffer from stunting (that is, low height for their age, reflecting chronic undernutrition); and
4. CHILD MORTALITY: the mortality rate of children under the age of five (partially reflecting the fatal synergy of inadequate nutrition and unhealthy environments).2
More than 13 million people were uprooted by violence in 2014. Most left, propelled by conflicts as in Syria, Afghanistan, and Somalia. An average of 42,500 people per day fled their homes in 2014. Approximately 59.5 million people are displaced by conflict and persecution worldwide, the highest level ever recorded
Increasing numbers of people are being caught in a “conflict trap” that holds them in poverty. Today, displaced people spend an average of more than 17 years in camps or with host communities. Moreover, most of the more than 40 countries affected by internal conflict since 2000 had already suffered one or more civil wars over the previous three decades. Conflict can have ripple effects on human welfare. Countries that suffer protracted or repeated violent conflict may experience much higher levels of undernutrition, reduced access to education, and much higher infant mortality than stable countries of similar economic standing.
The 2015 Global Hunger Index, jointly published by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), Concern Worldwide, and Welthungerhilfe, shows that levels of hunger in the developing world have declined by more than one-quarter since 2000. Despite the progress made, the level of hunger in the world remains unacceptably high, with 795 million people still going hungry, more than one in four children affected by stunting, and 9 percent of childrenaffected by wasting.
This is the tenth year that IFPRI has calculated the Global Hunger Index (GHI) and analyzed this multidimensional measure of global hunger. The series of reports tracks the state of hunger worldwide and country by country, putting a spotlight on those regions and countries where action is most needed to address hunger.
Because the calculation of the GHI is limited by the data collected by governments and international agencies, this report does not fully reflect the impact of the latest events. We hope that governments and international agencies will enhance their cooperation and release more timely and complete data on hunger worldwide.
This year’s report identifies the countries and regions where hunger is most severe and persistent. It shows that levels of hunger remain serious or alarming in 52 of the 117 countries with GHI scores. Among the world’s regions, South Asia and Africa south of the Sahara continue to experience the highest levels of hunger.
The report also explores the relationship between armed conflict and hunger. This year’s essay, authored by Alex de Waal, executive director of the World Peace Foundation and a research professor at Tufts University, sheds light on an unheralded achievement of the past 50 years. “Calamitous famines,” which are famines that kill more than one million people, seem to have vanished. De Waal notes that even if the link between conflict and hunger is clear, due to the effectiveness of humanitarian responses in the modern world, conflict need not necessarily lead to the extreme hunger that is famine.
The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) signal a renewed commitment to end hunger and global poverty by 2030. Under Goal 2, which is a call “to end hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition, and promote sustainable agriculture,” it will be critical to ensure that all people, in particular the poor and people in vulnerable situations, have access to sufficient and safe nutritious food all year round. More needs to be done to help people become more resilient and help them better withstand the consequences of armed conflict, as proposed in other SDGs. If the SDGs are to be more than aspirations, we need to find real and lasting solutions to conflict, tackle growing inequalities within and across borders, mitigate the effects of climate change, and eliminate the food insecurity that is most profoundly affecting the poorest places on the planet.
In the face of conflicts both new and old, we must intensify our fight against hunger. In this age of unprecedented mass displacement, a commensurate global response is needed to support those fleeing conflict and persecution. Looking ahead, the international community must make conflict prevention, mitigation, and resolution much higher political priority.
Direct Link to Full 46-Page 2015 Publication: http://ebrary.ifpri.org/utils/getfile/collection/p15738coll2/id/129681/filename/129892.pdf
Извор: WUNRN – 26.02.2016
