A woman making tortillas in her home in the village of San Lorenzo, Chiapas, Mexico. In Latin America, 8.4% of women are in a situation of severe food insecurity, compared to 6.9% of men. Credit: FAO

By Julio Berdergué, Carissa F. Etienne, Marita Perceval, and Miguel Barreto
SANTIAGO, Nov 8 2018 (IPS)

The number of undernourished people increased for the third consecutive year in Latin America and the Caribbean. It has exceeded 39 million people. In addition, almost one in four adults is obese, while overweight affects 250 million; more than the entire population of Brazil.

For this reason, for the first time, four agencies of the United Nations system -FAO, PAHO/WHO, UNICEF and WFP- have joined together to publish the Panorama of food and nutrition security in Latin America and the Caribbean 2018.

In Latin America, 8.4% of women are in a situation of severe food insecurity, compared to 6.9% of men. In ten countries, 20% of the poorest children suffer three times more chronic malnutrition than the richest 20%.
This year’s edition focuses on inequality, a fundamental issue for the region. Inequality contributes both to hunger and several different forms of malnutrition. In Latin America, 8.4% of women are in a situation of severe food insecurity, compared to 6.9% of men. In ten countries, 20% of the poorest children suffer three times more chronic malnutrition than the richest 20%. Indigenous populations suffer greater food insecurity than non-indigenous people, and rural populations have higher rates of poverty than urban ones.

Without addressing inequality in food security and nutrition, we will not be able to fulfill the commitment we have adopted to leave no one behind, established in the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda.

It is necessary to understand why malnutrition, lack of micronutrients, overweight and obesity have a greater impact on people with lower income, women, indigenous people, people of African descent and rural families. Above all, we must act in a differentiated way to ensure that these social groups and the populations of territories that are lagging behind can also fulfill their right to food.

FAO, PAHO/WHO, UNICEF and WFP are convinced that it is perfectly possible to transform our food systems to ensure a better diet for all, in a way that is more sustainable an adapted to climate change.

Today we understand that we need actions in production, international trade, processing and marketing of products to have healthy food. We can work to improve environments, in a way that facilitates access to healthy foods, and encourage practices that help people make more informed and responsible consumption decisions.

It is possible to change the current course of the region to accelerate progress towards the goal of eradicating hunger and all forms of malnutrition: the Sustainable Development Goal 2. For this, what we need most is to recover greater political commitment with the eradication of hunger and all forms of malnutrition.

Some governments are already implementing a new generation of policies to address the specificities of the groups that are suffering the most. Innovative public policies to reduce overweight and obesity are also being applied for the first time.

For these policies to be successful, we need the participation of everyone. Together we must think of ways for all the actors of the food system to act more responsibly with society and the environment, from producers to consumers. Together we can build food systems that ensure adequate food in the present and in the future. Together we can guarantee a healthy life for all and become the zero hunger generation.

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According to FAO studies, empowering rural women and investing in activities that significantly increase their productivity could lead to a significant reduction in hunger and malnutrition. Credit: Max Toranzos / FAO

By Julio Berdergué and Pablo Aguirre
SANTIAGO, Oct 16 2017 (IPS)

On September 15, we announced the “State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World” report, published in collaboration with five United Nations organisations, including FAO. The 144-page study shows numerous results and analyses of various dimensions and indicators, but the message is the same: after a long downward trend in the world’s hunger levels, we are now taking a step backwards.

It is estimated that today, 815 million people suffer from hunger, which corresponds to an increase of 38 million people compared to last year. This is an unacceptable backward step, especially if we recall that only two years ago, countries of the world committed to the Sustainable Development Goal: to eliminate hunger on the planet by 2030.

To supplement the previous report, FAO and the Pan American Health Organisation, have recently published the “Panorama of Food and Nutritional Security in Latin America and the Caribbean 2017”. The main message is the same: we are also losing ground in the fight against hunger.

Compared to the last measurement, 2.4 million persons have become undernourished. In total, 43 million people in Latin America and the Caribbean suffer from the scourge of hunger. In seven countries, more than 15% of the population is in this state: Antigua and Barbuda, the Plurinational State of Bolivia, Grenada, Guatemala, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Saint Lucia.

If the most recently projected hunger rates do no change, only eight countries will reach the Zero Hunger goal by 2030: Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Jamaica, Mexico, Trinidad and Tobago, and Uruguay. Therefore, we must make a stronger and better effort in reaching the committed goal.

Julio Berdegué, FAO Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean

Brazil, Cuba and Uruguay are leading the progress made in the fight against undernourishment and Chile, Argentina and Mexico are a part of the most advanced group of countries.

Less than 4.2% of their populations suffer from undernourishment. However, many of them have entered a stage where their progress has slowed down, just when the goal is within reach. Since 1990, Mexico has reduced incidences of hunger by 2.5% and Argentina by approximately 1.7%.

Countries like Nicaragua and Bolivia have another reality. The level of hunger in these nations are high, above 17%, but what is important is that they are improving and moving quickly in the right direction.

We highlight the case of Nicaragua, with an impressive reduction of 35% since 1990. Bolivia is also moving at a good speed with hunger decreasing by almost 16% since 1990.

We can identify a third group of countries where the problem has worsened over the last year. In Costa Rica, 5.6% of the population is suffering from undernourishment. It is one of the countries with the highest numbers, and the problem has recently increased.

Antigua and Barbuda, Grenada, Peru, Saint Lucia and Venezuela have also regressed compared to the year 2016, and in the latter case, even more significantly. Peru’s recent regression must be considered in light of the fact that this country has a successful long-term trajectory, since it has reduced hunger by 22% since 1990, leaving the country with only an 8% incidence of undernourishment.

Considering the previously summarised trends, what strategies do we need so that in the year 2030 we can say that Latin America and the Caribbean is a region free from hunger, as promised by our political leaders?

In countries like Guatemala or Haiti that still have a high percentage of the population suffering from hunger, we must establish a broad and transverse strategy, in other words, one that covers every corner of their societies. CELAC’s Food Security and Nutrition Plan or the Mesoamerican No Hunger Initiative have proposals based on the best and most successful regional experiences.

These countries, Haiti in particular, require international cooperation, but to be successful this must be supported by strong and long-term national political will, surpassing humanitarian logic and linking the reduction of hunger to the promotion of sustainable development.

Pablo Aguirre, technical advisor of the FAO Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean

In countries that already have this goal in sight but are still not victorious, the strategy that has worked in previous decades, must be changed.

These counties are entering a harder stage in the fight against hunger, which persists in social and territorial pockets of deep poverty, where factors such as institutional weaknesses, ethnic and gender inequalities, social exclusion, or geographic isolation, make the usual policies less effective.

It is like the climber who tries to reach to the peak of Mount Everest: the effort in the last 500 meters is a lot more that what was required at the beginning, and in order to reach the goal he must resort to special strategies.

At FAO, it is proposed that we accurately identify the social and territorial pockets of hunger, country by country, and for each one, we tailor-make a programme.

However, there is one very important factor in every country. Latin America and the Caribbean can only announce that our region is free from hunger in 2030 if our social and political leaders, businesses, each and every one of us, become convinced that populations suffering from hunger is an insult to our own dignity and an embarrassing trademark that we can no longer tolerate.

This article is part of a series of stories and op-eds launched by IPS on the occasion of this year’s World Food Day on October 16.

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