To mark World Food Day on Monday, Swiss NGO Swissaid is sounding the alarm: hunger is not going away. The 2023 Global Hunger Index (GHI) shows that 735 million people are undernourished, compared with 572 million in 2017.
The number two goal of the United Nations Agenda – to eliminate hunger by 2030 – seems to be slipping further away, Swissaid said in a statement on Saturday. In 14 countries, progress is virtually at a standstill.
In 18 countries, hunger has increased since 2015, and in 58 countries it is already certain that the Zero Hunger objective will not be achieved in time. Sub-Saharan Africa is particularly hard hit.
In addition to climate-related crises, armed conflicts and disruptions to supply chains, the structure and functioning of food systems are a major problem: in many places, they are neither sustainable nor prepared for the consequences of climate change.
This is where Swissaid’s work comes in. Projects are helping local people to switch to climate-resilient, local, social and sustainable agriculture.
“Agroecology projects make a major contribution to greater food sovereignty,” said Markus Allemann, director of Swissaid.
Knowledge of local cereals and vegetables adapted to climatic conditions is an important element in improving food security, the NGO continued. “Unfortunately, this knowledge is often forgotten, and many indigenous varieties that were once consumed are gradually being replaced by imported products. Wheat, for example, is gaining ground at the expense of millet in several regions of Africa.”
In order to make forgotten knowledge about local varieties public again, Swissaid has published the brochure “Agrobiodiversity on the PlateExternal link”. The brochure highlights the diversity of cereal varieties and legumes in various countries in the South, as well as their nutritional richness and key role in food security. The recipes with superfoods contained in the booklet are also possible solutions for a diverse diet adapted to climate change.