Food insecurity is one of the major global problems. Many are food insecure in many countries, though food production has significantly increased in recent decades and the produced foods are enough for all around the world. According to several sources including the World Food Programme and the World Bank, hundreds of millions of people are food insecure across the world and the number is increasing. But food insecurity —often defined as a lack of consistent access of everyone to enough food in a household to live an active and healthy life — is more in less developed countries. Given that the extent of food production has notably increased globally driven by improved agricultural systems, the existence of food insecurity is a concern.
It is pertinent to note that food insecurity may be chronic (or a long-term or persistent food insecurity to meet minimum food consumption requirements) and acute (or a short-term food insecurity). Millions of people are facing chronic food insecurity across the world but the number of people facing acute food insecurity is higher. According to the WFP, around 349 million people across 79 countries are facing acute food insecurity, though the number was 287 million in 2021. Moreover, around one million people worldwide are fighting to survive in famine-like conditions. Among countries, chronic and acute food insecurity exists more in several Asian and African countries including the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Yemen, the Syrian Arab Republic, Sudan and South Sudan.
Definitely, there are policy based and other causes of food insecurity. Unjust economic and other policies, poverty and a lack of income and employment opportunities are important causes. Many are poverty-stricken across the world and do not have the money needed to buy foods, even if foods are available. Moreover, a rise in the food price, the shortage of food supplies —an important cause of the unavailability of food —and the lack of availability of foods cause food insecurity. Chronic health conditions, limited access to health care and several other causes are also responsible for food insecurity in many countries. No less important is that conflicts, economic shocks, climate extremes (floods and droughts) and soaring fertilizer prices lead to food insecurity.
Though poverty is rendered the main cause of chronic food insecurity, conflicts have increasingly become a driving force of acute food insecurity. Conflicts in several Asian and African countries including DR Congo, Afghanistan and Yemen are the main cause of food insecurity. But the Russia-Ukraine war that has affected the global economy has led to a crisis of food and increased the food price in many developed, developing and less developed countries. Though the initial shortage of food driven by the absence of grain supplies from Ukraine was addressed with a deal reached between Russia and Ukraine mediated by the UN and Turkey, the war’s impact on food insecurity remains because of its global economic impacts and uncertainty.
But global efforts have been going on to ensure food security across the world for a long. Some efforts are related to providing food security by distributing foods directly, producing a higher amount than needed and making the supply of food undisrupted while others are related to improving the capacity to buy food. But because of inadequate global and local efforts and the uncertain nature of the causes of food insecurity —both chronic and acute —including climate extremes and wars, providing food security remains a significant challenge. To secure food security across the world, the direct and indirect causes of food insecurity across countries thus need to be well-addressed and well-planned global and local efforts are crucial.
But the emphasis needs to be given to providing income opportunities, along with the availability of food. Income opportunities are needed for all across the world not only to reduce poverty but also to increase food security. Increased buying capacity is needed to be emphasized more in less resourceful countries. Constraints, within and outside of national boundaries, to the supply of foods to markets also need to be addressed to make foods available. The supply of foods needs to be kept outside of wars including the Ukraine war. In this respect, the food grain export deal needs to be maintained. But emphasis also needs to be given to the mitigation of conflicts.
