GE-TCW

SGD - Zero Hunger

“Zero Hunger” is the one of the United Nation’s core agenda in its Sustainable
Development Goals (SGDs). It aims to "end hunger, achieve food security and
improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture" by 2030. Yet despite the
efforts made and some progress, we are far from the target global nutrition status.
The disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, including ongoing international
conflicts among countries and climate change, only worsened our food security
situation, especially in the most vulnerable population groups.

In a recent article by the UN, Mr. Abdulla Shahid, President of the 76th
session of the United Nations General Assembly, implied how we were already
“falling short on meeting our food-security targets”, even long before the pandemic in
2020. But now, with the Russian-Ukrainian dispute, even bigger consequences are
at hand and economies will continue to fall, governments will be tested, and even
more people will be hungry. According to the World Bank, “the conflict in Ukraine will
plunge an additional 95 million people into extreme poverty, and 50 million into
severe hunger” this 2022 alone.

In Africa, hunger levels are alarmingly high. Years of drought caused by

climate change resulted in failed harvests and high commodity prices among African
tribes and communities. A recent U.N. assessment estimates 346 million people on
the continent will face severe food insecurity, which means one-quarter of the
population will not have enough to eat. Meanwhile, most parts in Europe are not in
danger of food crisis, thanks to the steady production ensured by the EU's common
agricultural policy. But their problem is food affordability, among the low-income
communities. With the war in Ukraine under way, the export of agricultural products
from the involved countries are compromised in every other way. In the Philippines,
food prices are soaring up the market roofs. Ever since the pandemic started in early
2020, plus the calamities that struck the lands in late 2021, products have never
been back to their normal costs. And since Ukraine is one of the world’s biggest oil
producers, oil fees for agricultural and fishery machineries are affected, thus the
higher prices in products and services, including imports and exports in the country.

To address this, UN secretary-general António Guterres commends the

partners to join forces at what he called “this critical moment,” since the number of
people who are severely food insecure has doubled in the last two years. He
emphasized the need to immediately reintegrate Ukraine’s food production, and
Russia’s food and fertilizer, into world markets, and to keep global trade open. He
also tackled the finance crisis in the developing countries and to give them access to
effective debt relief to keep their economies afloat and their people thriving.
 The United Nation’s influence towards every global issue is highly significant,
but without the participation of the country, itself, there will be no progress. Since we
are in the 21st century, with technology in our wake, it should not be as difficult as it
was 10 years ago. All we need are concrete steps to secure global food markets and
to make use of our advancements in the present to ensure that starvation does not
prosper in these challenging times.

References:

Schlein, L. (2022, July 12). Sub-Saharan Africa Facing Sever Food Shortage. VOA
News. https://www.voanews.com/a/sub-saharan-africa-facing-severe-food-
shortage/6655559.html#:~:text=The%20ICRC%20warns%20Africa's%20food,into%2
0extreme%20poverty%20and%20hunger

Council of the European Union (2022, June 23-24). Food Security and Affordability.
https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/policies/food-security-and-affordability

The United Nations. (2022, June 24). Secretary-General Warns of Unprecedented

Global Hunger Crisis, with 276 million Facing Food Insecurity, Calling for Export
Recovery, Debt Relief [Press Release].
https://press.un.org/en/2022/sgsm21350.doc.htm

The United Nations. (2022, July 18). UN and partners meet to address ‘critical’ state
of global food crisis. https://press.un.org/en/2022/sgsm21350.doc.htm