The 2024 United Nations (UN) State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World (SOFI) report found that one in 11 people around the world, and one in five people in Africa, face hunger. The report warns that these numbers are not showing any signs of improvement. Currently, none of the nutrition improvement goals outlined by the World Health Organization for 2030 are on trend to be met.
In 2015, the UN adopted the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) in an effort to improve human health on a global scale. SDG 2 vows to end hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition, and promote sustainable agriculture by 2030. However, the latest UN report shows little improvement in these areas. Undernourishment, a form of malnourishment that includes wasting (low weight for height), stunting (low height for age), being underweight, and vitamin/mineral deficiency, has increased from 713 to 757 million people since 2019. These reported numbers show a regression to levels of malnourishment that have not been seen since 2008 and 2009.
The report found that 864 million people are experiencing severe food insecurity, going a day or more without food. Improvements have been seen in Latin America, but dire conditions exist elsewhere, such as in Africa, where 58% of the population is at least moderately food insecure. Simultaneously, obesity has increased substantially in other areas around the globe, with over 1 billion obese adults expected in 2030. Obesity is a form of malnutrition where an individual’s weight is too high for their height. A combination of obesity and undernutrition, such as vitamin/mineral deficiency, is becoming more and more common.
Other measures that lack improvement include low birthweight prevalence, which has been steady at 15% globally, stunting in children under five, wasting among children, and increases in anemia (low red blood cells or hemoglobin to carry oxygen) in women aged 15-49.
The stagnation in progress can be attributed to over a third of the world’s population struggling to afford a healthy diet due to food price inflation, conflict, and economic struggles at the national level. The report emphasizes a critical need for financing to eradicate hunger. Several UN agencies, such as UNICEF, the World Health Organization (WHO), and the World Food Programme, are calling for this to become a top priority in policymaking.
By Sarah Ortega