speech on zero hunger

Ending hunger

What is hunger.

Hunger is discomfort or pain caused by a lack of food. It is different from food insecurity, which means lack of regular access to safe and nutritious food for proper development and an active and healthy life.

Across the globe in 2024, as many as 309 million people are facing acute levels of food insecurity  in the 71 countries with WFP operations and where data is available. The World Food Programme (WFP) works to reach zero hunger by 2030, a target agreed by governments under the Sustainable Development Agenda and specifically Sustainable Development Goal 2 .

Hunger stats

• 37.2 million people in 'emergency' or worse levels of hunger
• 47 countries where these people live
• 139 million people WFP aims to reach in 2024

What are the causes of hunger?

Conflict is the primary cause of today's hunger crisis, driving people away from their land and livelihoods, disrupting markets, increasing food prices and destroying critical developmental gains. Its devastating impact can be seen across hunger hotspots including Palestine, Sudan , Syria , Yemen and Ukraine.   

Climate emergencies  such as floods, droughts and heatwaves also significantly contribute by destroying lives, livelihoods and crops, while degrading soils and damaging infrastructure and agricultural assets. 

Economic inequalities exacerbate hunger. When food prices rise due to struggling economies and external factors – for example the war in Ukraine – the poorest people struggle even more to put nutritious food on the table. Additionally, around 30 per cent of global  food production is lost or wasted every year,  with lack of access to technology and markets causing significant losses for many farmers.

What are the effects of hunger?

Diets poor in vitamins, minerals and other nutrients affect the health and life prospects of millions of people. The worst affected are children, with long-term consequences for their physical and mental development. Malnourished children are up to 12 times more likely to die than a healthy child.    Malnutrition slows economic growth,  perpetuates poverty, impacts children's education and adults workforce skills with dire consequences for countries' human capital and future development.  

As part of a vicious cycle, hunger can also fuel conflict as well as vice-versa.  People forced from their land may be vying with others for scarce resources, especially in areas where poverty and inequality are already present. 

When does hunger become famine?

Famine is the most severe form of food insecurity. It can be declared when malnutrition is widespread, and people have started dying of starvation through lack of access to sufficient, nutritious food. Among the most vulnerable groups are internally displaced people and refugees caught between the frontlines of hunger, many of whom are totally dependent on food assistance for their survival.

Definition of famine

• 2 people per 10,000 die from starvation, or disease + malnutrition
• 20% of households face extreme food shortages
• 30% of children suffer from acute malnutrition

How WFP tackles hunger: cause by cause

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WHO Director-General’s opening remarks at the Global Food Security Summit: Towards Zero Hunger and Ending Malnutrition "Session One: Creating new approaches to ending preventable deaths of children"Organizers: UK FCDO – 20 November 2023

The Right Honourable the Deputy Prime Minister Salah Ahmed Jama,  

The Right Honourable Minister of State for Development and Africa Andrew Mitchell, my very good friend,

Honourable ministers, distinguished guests, dear colleagues and friends,

I thank Prime Minister Sunak and the government of the United Kingdom for convening this important summit.

You are all familiar with the saying, “You are what you eat.”

Of course, that’s true of diet and health, but it’s true in other ways as well.

Food is an essential part of culture, faith, sport, even art.

Food is part of what it means to be human. Food is life.

And yet for so many people in our world, especially children, food – or the lack of it – is a source of sickness and death.

In 2015, the world committed to eliminating hunger and other forms of malnutrition by 2030, as part of the Sustainable Development Goals.

As with many of the SDGs, we are a long way from reaching that target.

A few statistics:

45 million children under five in our world – one in 15 – are wasted, meaning they are dangerously thin for their height.

More than one-third of these children, nearly 14 million, have the most severe form of wasting, with the greatest risk of dying.

A child who is moderately or severely wasted is 11 times more likely to die than a child who is not malnourished, often because his or her body is too weak to fight back against diarrhoea and pneumonia.

An estimated one million children a year die because of wasting.

Think about that: by the time we have finished our meeting today, about 900 children will have died because they don’t have enough food or care – children whose lives have only just begun.

The factors that drive wasting vary, but are largely a result of poverty and rising food prices, preventable diseases, inadequate access to health care, and a lack of clean water, sanitation and hygiene.

Conflict, the climate crisis, natural disasters and resource depletion all dramatically increase the risk of hunger and famine. 

Malnutrition is also generational.

An infant’s nutritional status is linked closely to the nutritional status of her or his mother before, during and after pregnancy.

Poor maternal nutrition impairs foetal development and contributes to low birthweight, wasting and poor growth.

Children who survive will suffer from malnutrition and ill health for most of their lives, and be stuck in a vicious cycle of poverty, debt, and ill-health.

Severe acute malnutrition can be treated, with therapeutic milks, foods and fluid support, at home or in a health facility, according to the needs of the child.

Although treatment coverage has increased, many children with severe acute malnutrition cannot access sufficient care.

Earlier this year, WHO added ready-to-use therapeutic foods to our Essential Medicines List. We hope this will increase the production and availability of therapeutic foods, and reduce the price.

The Global Action Plan on Child Wasting, developed by WHO and other UN agencies, is a call to action to improve the prevention and management of wasting.

To support the Global Action Plan, WHO has today published a new guideline on the prevention and management of wasting, as Andrew indicated earlier.

It highlights the importance of adequate home diets and access to quality health services.

It stresses early identification of mothers in need and infants at risk of poor growth and development.

It recommends better integration of nutrition services into health systems and to empower community health workers to treat children with acute malnutrition in communities.

WHO is working with UNICEF and other UN agencies to support governments and health workers to implement these recommendations, and adapt them to country needs.

We are seeing some encouraging signs of progress.

Twenty-three countries have now completed country roadmaps to tackle wasting in children.

I congratulate these countries for their leadership.

Now we must support these countries to turn their roadmaps into action and lives saved.

We are grateful to those donors who have supported the development of the guidelines, and who have committed to fund their implementation.

Deputy Prime Minister, Minister, dear colleagues and friends,

My thanks again to the UK for its leadership in bringing us together, and for bringing attention to this critical issue.

Many of us here are parents. The thought of our own children suffering from malnutrition is intolerable.

The thought of anyone’s child suffering in this way is intolerable.

That thought must drive us to action. And there is something we can do.

Because these deaths are predictable and preventable.  

WHO looks forward to working with all of you to make food a source of life and hope for all the children of our world.

I thank you.  

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GOAL 2: Zero hunger

Learn more about SDG 2

End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture:

Nature provides direct sources of food and a series of ecosystem services (e.g. pollination, soil formation, nutrient cycling, and water regulation) supporting agricultural activities and contributing to food security and nutrition.

Increasing world population and changes in consumption patterns put pressure on the environment creating the need to produce food for an additional two billion people by 2030, while preserving and enhancing the natural resource base upon which the well-being of present and future generations depends. This is important considering that unsustainable expansion of agriculture has created serious environmental problems such as soil erosion, water pollution through agrochemicals, and emission of greenhouse gases.

Climate change and `natural` disasters such as droughts, landslides and floods greatly affect food security. Disaster risk management, climate change adaptation and mitigation are key to increase harvests quality and quantity.

Targets linked to the environment:

• Target 2.4: By 2030, ensure sustainable food production systems and implement resilient agricultural practices that increase productivity and production, that help maintain ecosystems, that strengthen capacity for adaptation to climate change, extreme weather, drought, flooding and other disasters and that progressively improve land and soil quality
• Target 2.5: By 2020, maintain the genetic diversity of seeds, cultivated plants and farmed and domesticated animals and their related wild species, including through soundly managed and diversified seed and plant banks at the national, regional and international levels, and promote access to and fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from the utilization of genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge, as internationally agreed.

Related Sustainable Development Goals

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ENCYCLOPEDIC ENTRY

Sustainable development goal: zero hunger.

More than 800 million people around the world are hungry. The United Nations’s second Sustainable Development Goal, Zero Hunger, aims to end world hunger by 2030.

Conservation, Social Studies, Civics, Economics

Migrants in Italy

People displaced from their homes because of war and conflict—as some of the migrants shown here in Rome, Italy, likely are—often are vulnerable to hunger.

Photograph by Stefano Montesi/Corbis

In 2012, at the United Nations (UN) Conferences on Sustainable Development in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, world representatives created the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The purpose of creating SDGs was “to produce a set of universal goals that meet the urgent environmental, political and economic challenges facing our world,” according to the UN Development Programme. There are 17 SDGs that the UN hopes to meet by 2030, the second of which is Zero Hunger . Hunger is not caused by food shortage alone, but by a combination of natural, social, and political forces. Currently, natural resources that are necessary for human survival—like freshwater, the ocean, forests, soils, and more—are dwindling. Climate change is contributing to the degradation of precious resources, as severe weather events, like droughts, become more common and affect harvests, leading to less food for human consumption. Poverty and inequality are also two drivers of hunger, affecting who can buy food, as well as what kind of food, and how much, is available. Hunger is also a product of war and conflict. During periods of unrest, a country's economy and infrastructure can become severely damaged. This negatively affects civilian access to food by either driving up food prices, interfering with food production, or forcing people from their homes. Some governments and military groups have even used starvation as a war tactic, cutting off civilians from their food supply. In 2018, the UN declared this tactic a war crime . With these problems in mind, the world needs sustainable solutions to adequately feed each person on the planet. Right now, there are around 815 million people who are hungry. This number is only expected to increase as the years go on; the UN estimates that two billion more people will be undernourished by 2050. The Zero Hunger SDG focuses on finding sustainable solutions to stop world hunger. The goals of the Zero Hunger initiative are to end hunger and make sure that enough nutritious foods are available to people by 2030. Other aspects of the goal include ending all forms of malnutrition and promoting sustainable agriculture . One environmental scientist that is working to alleviate world hunger is Jennifer Anne Burney. She is a National Geographic Explorer and associate professor at the School of Global Policy and Strategy at the University of California at San Diego. Concentrating on ensuring food security for the world as well as limiting climate change, Burney designs and uses technologies to improve food and nutrition security.

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Are We Ready to End World Hunger?

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THE SDGS IN ACTION.

What are the sustainable development goals.

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), also known as the Global Goals, were adopted by the United Nations in 2015 as a universal call to action to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure that by 2030 all people enjoy peace and prosperity.

The 17 SDGs are integrated—they recognize that action in one area will affect outcomes in others, and that development must balance social, economic and environmental sustainability.

Countries have committed to prioritize progress for those who're furthest behind. The SDGs are designed to end poverty, hunger, AIDS, and discrimination against women and girls.

The creativity, knowhow, technology and financial resources from all of society is necessary to achieve the SDGs in every context.

Eradicating poverty in all its forms remains one of the greatest challenges facing humanity. While the number of people living in extreme poverty dropped by more than half between 1990 and 2015, too many are still struggling for the most basic human needs.

As of 2015, about 736 million people still lived on less than US$1.90 a day; many lack food, clean drinking water and sanitation. Rapid growth in countries such as China and India has lifted millions out of poverty, but progress has been uneven. Women are more likely to be poor than men because they have less paid work, education, and own less property.

Progress has also been limited in other regions, such as South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, which account for 80 percent of those living in extreme poverty. New threats brought on by climate change, conflict and food insecurity, mean even more work is needed to bring people out of poverty.

The SDGs are a bold commitment to finish what we started, and end poverty in all forms and dimensions by 2030. This involves targeting the most vulnerable, increasing basic resources and services, and supporting communities affected by conflict and climate-related disasters.

736 million people still live in extreme poverty.

10 percent of the world’s population live in extreme poverty, down from 36 percent in 1990.

Some 1.3 billion people live in multidimensional poverty.

Half of all people living in poverty are under 18.

One person in every 10 is extremely poor.

Goal targets

• By 2030, reduce at least by half the proportion of men, women and children of all ages living in poverty in all its dimensions according to national definitions
• Implement nationally appropriate social protection systems and measures for all, including floors, and by 2030 achieve substantial coverage of the poor and the vulnerable
• By 2030, ensure that all men and women, in particular the poor and the vulnerable, have equal rights to economic resources, as well as access to basic services, ownership and control over land and other forms of property, inheritance, natural resources, appropriate new technology and financial services, including microfinance
• By 2030, build the resilience of the poor and those in vulnerable situations and reduce their exposure and vulnerability to climate-related extreme events and other economic, social and environmental shocks and disasters
• Ensure significant mobilization of resources from a variety of sources, including through enhanced development cooperation, in order to provide adequate and predictable means for developing countries, in particular least developed countries, to implement programmes and policies to end poverty in all its dimensions
• Create sound policy frameworks at the national, regional and international levels, based on pro-poor and gender-sensitive development strategies, to support accelerated investment in poverty eradication actions

SDGs in Action

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Zero hunger.

Zero Hunger

The number of undernourished people has dropped by almost half in the past two decades because of rapid economic growth and increased agricultural productivity. Many developing countries that used to suffer from famine and hunger can now meet their nutritional needs. Central and East Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean have all made huge progress in eradicating extreme hunger.

Unfortunately, extreme hunger and malnutrition remain a huge barrier to development in many countries. There are 821 million people estimated to be chronically undernourished as of 2017, often as a direct consequence of environmental degradation, drought and biodiversity loss. Over 90 million children under five are dangerously underweight. Undernourishment and severe food insecurity appear to be increasing in almost all regions of Africa, as well as in South America.

The SDGs aim to end all forms of hunger and malnutrition by 2030, making sure all people–especially children–have sufficient and nutritious food all year. This involves promoting sustainable agricultural, supporting small-scale farmers and equal access to land, technology and markets. It also requires international cooperation to ensure investment in infrastructure and technology to improve agricultural productivity.

The number of undernourished people reached 821 million in 2017.

In 2017 Asia accounted for nearly two thirds, 63 percent, of the world’s hungry.

Nearly 151 million children under five, 22 percent, were still stunted in 2017.

More than 1 in 8 adults is obese.

1 in 3 women of reproductive age is anemic.

26 percent of workers are employed in agriculture.

• By 2030, end all forms of malnutrition, including achieving, by 2025, the internationally agreed targets on stunting and wasting in children under 5 years of age, and address the nutritional needs of adolescent girls, pregnant and lactating women and older persons
• By 2030, double the agricultural productivity and incomes of small-scale food producers, in particular women, indigenous peoples, family farmers, pastoralists and fishers, including through secure and equal access to land, other productive resources and inputs, knowledge, financial services, markets and opportunities for value addition and non-farm employment
• By 2030, ensure sustainable food production systems and implement resilient agricultural practices that increase productivity and production, that help maintain ecosystems, that strengthen capacity for adaptation to climate change, extreme weather, drought, flooding and other disasters and that progressively improve land and soil quality
• By 2020, maintain the genetic diversity of seeds, cultivated plants and farmed and domesticated animals and their related wild species, including through soundly managed and diversified seed and plant banks at the national, regional and international levels, and promote access to and fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from the utilization of genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge, as internationally agreed
• Increase investment, including through enhanced international cooperation, in rural infrastructure, agricultural research and extension services, technology development and plant and livestock gene banks in order to enhance agricultural productive capacity in developing countries, in particular least developed countries
• Correct and prevent trade restrictions and distortions in world agricultural markets, including through the parallel elimination of all forms of agricultural export subsidies and all export measures with equivalent effect, in accordance with the mandate of the Doha Development Round
• Adopt measures to ensure the proper functioning of food commodity markets and their derivatives and facilitate timely access to market information, including on food reserves, in order to help limit extreme food price volatility.

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Good health and well-being.

We have made great progress against several leading causes of death and disease. Life expectancy has increased dramatically; infant and maternal mortality rates have declined, we’ve turned the tide on HIV and malaria deaths have halved.

Good health is essential to sustainable development and the 2030 Agenda reflects the complexity and interconnectedness of the two. It takes into account widening economic and social inequalities, rapid urbanization, threats to the climate and the environment, the continuing burden of HIV and other infectious diseases, and emerging challenges such as noncommunicable diseases. Universal health coverage will be integral to achieving SDG 3, ending poverty and reducing inequalities. Emerging global health priorities not explicitly included in the SDGs, including antimicrobial resistance, also demand action.

But the world is off-track to achieve the health-related SDGs. Progress has been uneven, both between and within countries. There’s a 31-year gap between the countries with the shortest and longest life expectancies. And while some countries have made impressive gains, national averages hide that many are being left behind. Multisectoral, rights-based and gender-sensitive approaches are essential to address inequalities and to build good health for all.

At least 400 million people have no basic healthcare, and 40 percent lack social protection.

More than 1.6 billion people live in fragile settings where protracted crises, combined with weak national capacity to deliver basic health services, present a significant challenge to global health.

By the end of 2017, 21.7 million people living with HIV were receiving antiretroviral therapy. Yet more than 15 million people are still waiting for treatment.

Every 2 seconds someone aged 30 to 70 years dies prematurely from noncommunicable diseases - cardiovascular disease, chronic respiratory disease, diabetes or cancer.

7 million people die every year from exposure to fine particles in polluted air.

More than one of every three women have experienced either physical or sexual violence at some point in their life resulting in both short- and long-term consequences for their physical, mental, and sexual and reproductive health.

• By 2030, reduce the global maternal mortality ratio to less than 70 per 100,000 live births
• By 2030, end preventable deaths of newborns and children under 5 years of age, with all countries aiming to reduce neonatal mortality to at least as low as 12 per 1,000 live births and under-5 mortality to at least as low as 25 per 1,000 live births
• By 2030, end the epidemics of AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria and neglected tropical diseases and combat hepatitis, water-borne diseases and other communicable diseases
• By 2030, reduce by one third premature mortality from non-communicable diseases through prevention and treatment and promote mental health and well-being
• Strengthen the prevention and treatment of substance abuse, including narcotic drug abuse and harmful use of alcohol
• By 2020, halve the number of global deaths and injuries from road traffic accidents
• By 2030, ensure universal access to sexual and reproductive health-care services, including for family planning, information and education, and the integration of reproductive health into national strategies and programmes
• Achieve universal health coverage, including financial risk protection, access to quality essential health-care services and access to safe, effective, quality and affordable essential medicines and vaccines for all
• By 2030, substantially reduce the number of deaths and illnesses from hazardous chemicals and air, water and soil pollution and contamination
• Strengthen the implementation of the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control in all countries, as appropriate
• Support the research and development of vaccines and medicines for the communicable and noncommunicable diseases that primarily affect developing countries, provide access to affordable essential medicines and vaccines, in accordance with the Doha Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and Public Health, which affirms the right of developing countries to use to the full the provisions in the Agreement on Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights regarding flexibilities to protect public health, and, in particular, provide access to medicines for all
• Substantially increase health financing and the recruitment, development, training and retention of the health workforce in developing countries, especially in least developed countries and small island developing States
• Strengthen the capacity of all countries, in particular developing countries, for early warning, risk reduction and management of national and global health risks

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Quality education.

Since 2000, there has been enormous progress in achieving the target of universal primary education. The total enrollment rate in developing regions reached 91 percent in 2015, and the worldwide number of children out of school has dropped by almost half. There has also been a dramatic increase in literacy rates, and many more girls are in school than ever before. These are all remarkable successes.

Progress has also been tough in some developing regions due to high levels of poverty, armed conflicts and other emergencies. In Western Asia and North Africa, ongoing armed conflict has seen an increase in the number of children out of school. This is a worrying trend. While Sub-Saharan Africa made the greatest progress in primary school enrollment among all developing regions – from 52 percent in 1990, up to 78 percent in 2012 – large disparities still remain. Children from the poorest households are up to four times more likely to be out of school than those of the richest households. Disparities between rural and urban areas also remain high.

Achieving inclusive and quality education for all reaffirms the belief that education is one of the most powerful and proven vehicles for sustainable development. This goal ensures that all girls and boys complete free primary and secondary schooling by 2030. It also aims to provide equal access to affordable vocational training, to eliminate gender and wealth disparities, and achieve universal access to a quality higher education.

Enrollment in primary education in developing countries has reached 91 percent.

Still, 57 million primary-aged children remain out of school, more than half of them in sub-Saharan Africa.

In developing countries, one in four girls is not in school.

About half of all out-of-school children of primary school age live in conflict-affected areas.

103 million youth worldwide lack basic literacy skills, and more than 60 percent of them are women.

6 out of 10 children and adolescents are not achieving a minimum level of proficiency in reading and math.

• By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys complete free, equitable and quality primary and secondary education leading to relevant and Goal-4 effective learning outcomes
• By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys have access to quality early childhood development, care and preprimary education so that they are ready for primary education
• By 2030, ensure equal access for all women and men to affordable and quality technical, vocational and tertiary education, including university
• By 2030, substantially increase the number of youth and adults who have relevant skills, including technical and vocational skills, for employment, decent jobs and entrepreneurship
• By 2030, eliminate gender disparities in education and ensure equal access to all levels of education and vocational training for the vulnerable, including persons with disabilities, indigenous peoples and children in vulnerable situations
• By 2030, ensure that all youth and a substantial proportion of adults, both men and women, achieve literacy and numeracy
• By 2030, ensure that all learners acquire the knowledge and skills needed to promote sustainable development, including, among others, through education for sustainable development and sustainable lifestyles, human rights, gender equality, promotion of a culture of peace and non-violence, global citizenship and appreciation of cultural diversity and of culture’s contribution to sustainable development
• Build and upgrade education facilities that are child, disability and gender sensitive and provide safe, nonviolent, inclusive and effective learning environments for all
• By 2020, substantially expand globally the number of scholarships available to developing countries, in particular least developed countries, small island developing States and African countries, for enrolment in higher education, including vocational training and information and communications technology, technical, engineering and scientific programmes, in developed countries and other developing countries
• By 2030, substantially increase the supply of qualified teachers, including through international cooperation for teacher training in developing countries, especially least developed countries and small island developing states

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Gender equality.

Gender Equality

Ending all discrimination against women and girls is not only a basic human right, it’s crucial for sustainable future; it’s proven that empowering women and girls helps economic growth and development.

UNDP has made gender equality central to its work and we’ve seen remarkable progress in the past 20 years. There are more girls in school now compared to 15 years ago, and most regions have reached gender parity in primary education.

But although there are more women than ever in the labour market, there are still large inequalities in some regions, with women systematically denied the same work rights as men. Sexual violence and exploitation, the unequal division of unpaid care and domestic work, and discrimination in public office all remain huge barriers. Climate change and disasters continue to have a disproportionate effect on women and children, as do conflict and migration.

It is vital to give women equal rights land and property, sexual and reproductive health, and to technology and the internet. Today there are more women in public office than ever before, but encouraging more women leaders will help achieve greater gender equality.

Women earn only 77 cents for every dollar that men get for the same work.

35 percent of women have experienced physical and/or sexual violence.

Women represent just 13 percent of agricultural landholders.

Almost 750 million women and girls alive today were married before their 18th birthday.

Two thirds of developing countries have achieved gender parity in primary education.

Only 24 percent of national parliamentarians were women as of November 2018, a small increase from 11.3 percent in 1995.

• End all forms of discrimination against all women and girls everywhere
• Eliminate all forms of violence against all women and girls in the public and private spheres, including trafficking and sexual and other types of exploitation
• Eliminate all harmful practices, such as child, early and forced marriage and female genital mutilation
• Recognize and value unpaid care and domestic work through the provision of public services, infrastructure and social protection policies and the promotion of shared responsibility within the household and the family as nationally appropriate
• Ensure women’s full and effective participation and equal opportunities for leadership at all levels of decisionmaking in political, economic and public life
• Ensure universal access to sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights as agreed in accordance with the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development and the Beijing Platform for Action and the outcome documents of their review conferences
• Undertake reforms to give women equal rights to economic resources, as well as access to ownership and control over land and other forms of property, financial services, inheritance and natural resources, in accordance with national laws
• Enhance the use of enabling technology, in particular information and communications technology, to promote the empowerment of women
• Adopt and strengthen sound policies and enforceable legislation for the promotion of gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls at all levels

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Clean water and sanitation.

Water scarcity affects more than 40 percent of people, an alarming figure that is projected to rise as temperatures do. Although 2.1 billion people have improved water sanitation since 1990, dwindling drinking water supplies are affecting every continent.

More and more countries are experiencing water stress, and increasing drought and desertification is already worsening these trends. By 2050, it is projected that at least one in four people will suffer recurring water shortages.

Safe and affordable drinking water for all by 2030 requires we invest in adequate infrastructure, provide sanitation facilities, and encourage hygiene. Protecting and restoring water-related ecosystems is essential.

Ensuring universal safe and affordable drinking water involves reaching over 800 million people who lack basic services and improving accessibility and safety of services for over two billion.

In 2015, 4.5 billion people lacked safely managed sanitation services (with adequately disposed or treated excreta) and 2.3 billion lacked even basic sanitation.

71 percent of the global population, 5.2 billion people, had safely-managed drinking water in 2015, but 844 million people still lacked even basic drinking water.

39 percent of the global population, 2.9 billion people, had safe sanitation in 2015, but 2.3 billion people still lacked basic sanitation. 892 million people practiced open defecation.

80 percent of wastewater goes into waterways without adequate treatment.

Water stress affects more than 2 billion people, with this figure projected to increase.

80 percent of countries have laid the foundations for integrated water resources management.

The world has lost 70 percent of its natural wetlands over the last century.

• By 2030, achieve universal and equitable access to safe and affordable drinking water for all
• By 2030, achieve access to adequate and equitable sanitation and hygiene for all and end open defecation, paying special attention to the needs of women and girls and those in vulnerable situations
• By 2030, improve water quality by reducing pollution, eliminating dumping and minimizing release of hazardous chemicals and materials, halving the proportion of untreated wastewater and substantially increasing recycling and safe reuse globally
• By 2030, substantially increase water-use efficiency across all sectors and ensure sustainable withdrawals and supply of freshwater to address water scarcity and substantially reduce the number of people suffering from water scarcity
• By 2030, implement integrated water resources management at all levels, including through transboundary cooperation as appropriate
• By 2020, protect and restore water-related ecosystems, including mountains, forests, wetlands, rivers, aquifers and lakes
• By 2030, expand international cooperation and capacity-building support to developing countries in water- and sanitation-related activities and programmes, including water harvesting, desalination, water efficiency, wastewater treatment, recycling and reuse technologies
• Support and strengthen the participation of local communities in improving water and sanitation management

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Affordable and clean energy.

Between 2000 and 2018, the number of people with electricity increased from 78 to 90 percent, and the numbers without electricity dipped to 789 million.

Yet as the population continues to grow, so will the demand for cheap energy, and an economy reliant on fossil fuels is creating drastic changes to our climate.

Investing in solar, wind and thermal power, improving energy productivity, and ensuring energy for all is vital if we are to achieve SDG 7 by 2030.

Expanding infrastructure and upgrading technology to provide clean and more efficient energy in all countries will encourage growth and help the environment.  

One out of 10 people still lacks electricity, and most live in rural areas of the developing world. More than half are in sub-Saharan Africa.

Energy is by far the main contributor to climate change. It accounts for 73 percent of human-caused greenhouse gases.

Energy efficiency is key; the right efficiency policies could enable the world to achieve more than 40 percent of the emissions cuts needed to reach its climate goals without new technology.

Almost a third of the world’s population—2.8 billion—rely on polluting and unhealthy fuels for cooking.

As of 2017, 17.5 percent of power was generated through renewable sources.

The renewable energy sector employed a record 11.5 million people in 2019. The changes needed in energy production and uses to achieve the Paris Agreement target of limiting the rise in temperature to below 2C can create 18 million jobs.

• By 2030, ensure universal access to affordable, reliable and modern energy services
• By 2030, increase substantially the share of renewable energy in the global energy mix
• By 2030, double the global rate of improvement in energy efficiency
• By 2030, enhance international cooperation to facilitate access to clean energy research and technology, including renewable energy, energy efficiency and advanced and cleaner fossil-fuel technology, and promote investment in energy infrastructure and clean energy technology
• By 2030, expand infrastructure and upgrade technology for supplying modern and sustainable energy services for all in developing countries, in particular least developed countries, small island developing States, and land-locked developing coun

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Decent work and economic growth.

Over the past 25 years the number of workers living in extreme poverty has declined dramatically, despite the lasting impact of the 2008 economic crisis and global recession. In developing countries, the middle class now makes up more than 34 percent of total employment – a number that has almost tripled between 1991 and 2015.

However, as the global economy continues to recover we are seeing slower growth, widening inequalities, and not enough jobs to keep up with a growing labour force. According to the International Labour Organization, more than 204 million people were unemployed in 2015.

The SDGs promote sustained economic growth, higher levels of productivity and technological innovation. Encouraging entrepreneurship and job creation are key to this, as are effective measures to eradicate forced labour, slavery and human trafficking. With these targets in mind, the goal is to achieve full and productive employment, and decent work, for all women and men by 2030.

An estimated 172 million people worldwide were without work in 2018 - an unemployment rate of 5 percent.

As a result of an expanding labour force, the number of unemployed is projected to increase by 1 million every year and reach 174 million by 2020.

Some 700 million workers lived in extreme or moderate poverty in 2018, with less than US$3.20 per day.

Women’s participation in the labour force stood at 48 per cent in 2018, compared with 75 percent for men. Around 3 in 5 of the 3.5 billion people in the labour force in 2018 were men.

Overall, 2 billion workers were in informal employment in 2016, accounting for 61 per cent of the world’s workforce.

Many more women than men are underutilized in the labour force—85 million compared to 55 million.

• Sustain per capita economic growth in accordance with national circumstances and, in particular, at least 7 per cent gross domestic product growth per annum in the least developed countries
• Achieve higher levels of economic productivity through diversification, technological upgrading and innovation, including through a focus on high-value added and labour-intensive sectors
• Promote development-oriented policies that support productive activities, decent job creation, entrepreneurship, creativity and innovation, and encourage the formalization and growth of micro-, small- and medium-sized enterprises, including through access to financial services
• Improve progressively, through 2030, global resource efficiency in consumption and production and endeavour to decouple economic growth from environmental degradation, in accordance with the 10-year framework of programmes on sustainable consumption and production, with developed countries taking the lead
• By 2030, achieve full and productive employment and decent work for all women and men, including for young people and persons with disabilities, and equal pay for work of equal value
• By 2020, substantially reduce the proportion of youth not in employment, education or training
• Take immediate and effective measures to eradicate forced labour, end modern slavery and human trafficking and secure the prohibition and elimination of the worst forms of child labour, including recruitment and use of child soldiers, and by 2025 end child labour in all its forms
• Protect labour rights and promote safe and secure working environments for all workers, including migrant workers, in particular women migrants, and those in precarious employment
• By 2030, devise and implement policies to promote sustainable tourism that creates jobs and promotes local culture and products
• Strengthen the capacity of domestic financial institutions to encourage and expand access to banking, insurance and financial services for all
• Increase Aid for Trade support for developing countries, in particular least developed countries, including through the Enhanced Integrated Framework for Trade-Related Technical Assistance to Least Developed Countries
• By 2020, develop and operationalize a global strategy for youth employment and implement the Global Jobs Pact of the International Labour Organization

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Industry, innovation and infrastructure.

Investment in infrastructure and innovation are crucial drivers of economic growth and development. With over half the world population now living in cities, mass transport and renewable energy are becoming ever more important, as are the growth of new industries and information and communication technologies.

Technological progress is also key to finding lasting solutions to both economic and environmental challenges, such as providing new jobs and promoting energy efficiency. Promoting sustainable industries, and investing in scientific research and innovation, are all important ways to facilitate sustainable development.

More than 4 billion people still do not have access to the Internet, and 90 percent are from the developing world. Bridging this digital divide is crucial to ensure equal access to information and knowledge, as well as foster innovation and entrepreneurship.   

Worldwide, 2.3 billion people lack access to basic sanitation.

In some low-income African countries, infrastructure constraints cut businesses’ productivity by around 40 percent.

2.6 billion people in developing countries do not have access to constant electricity.

More than 4 billion people still do not have access to the Internet; 90 percent of them are in the developing world.

The renewable energy sectors currently employ more than 2.3 million people; the number could reach 20 million by 2030.

In developing countries, barely 30 percent of agricultural products undergo industrial processing, compared to 98 percent high-income countries.

• Develop quality, reliable, sustainable and resilient infrastructure, including regional and transborder infrastructure, to support economic development and human well-being, with a focus on affordable and equitable access for all
• Promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and, by 2030, significantly raise industry’s share of employment and gross domestic product, in line with national circumstances, and double its share in least developed countries
• Increase the access of small-scale industrial and other enterprises, in particular in developing countries, to financial services, including affordable credit, and their integration into value chains and markets
• By 2030, upgrade infrastructure and retrofit industries to make them sustainable, with increased resource-use efficiency and greater adoption of clean and environmentally sound technologies and industrial processes, with all countries taking action in accordance with their respective capabilities
• Enhance scientific research, upgrade the technological capabilities of industrial sectors in all countries, in particular developing countries, including, by 2030, encouraging innovation and substantially increasing the number of research and development workers per 1 million people and public and private research and development spending
• Facilitate sustainable and resilient infrastructure development in developing countries through enhanced financial, technological and technical support to African countries, least developed countries, landlocked developing countries and small island developing States 18
• Support domestic technology development, research and innovation in developing countries, including by ensuring a conducive policy environment for, inter alia, industrial diversification and value addition to commodities
• Significantly increase access to information and communications technology and strive to provide universal and affordable access to the Internet in least developed countries by 2020

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Reduced inequalities.

Income inequality is on the rise—the richest 10 percent have up to 40 percent of global income whereas the poorest 10 percent earn only between 2 to 7 percent. If we take into account population growth inequality in developing countries, inequality has increased by 11 percent.

Income inequality has increased in nearly everywhere in recent decades, but at different speeds. It’s lowest in Europe and highest in the Middle East.

These widening disparities require sound policies to empower lower income earners, and promote economic inclusion of all regardless of sex, race or ethnicity.

Income inequality requires global solutions. This involves improving the regulation and monitoring of financial markets and institutions, encouraging development assistance and foreign direct investment to regions where the need is greatest. Facilitating the safe migration and mobility of people is also key to bridging the widening divide.

In 2016, 22 percent of global income was received by the top 1 percent compared with 10 percent of income for the bottom 50 percent.

In 1980, the top one percent had 16 percent of global income. The bottom 50 percent had 8 percent of income.

Economic inequality is largely driven by the unequal ownership of capital. Since 1980, very large transfers of public to private wealth occurred in nearly all countries. The global wealth share of the top 1 percent was 33 percent in 2016.

Under "business as usual", the top 1 percent global wealth will reach 39 percent by 2050.

Women spend, on average, twice as much time on unpaid housework as men.

Women have as much access to financial services as men in just 60 percent of the countries assessed and to land ownership in just 42 percent of the countries assessed.

• By 2030, progressively achieve and sustain income growth of the bottom 40 per cent of the population at a rate higher than the national average
• By 2030, empower and promote the social, economic and political inclusion of all, irrespective of age, sex, disability, race, ethnicity, origin, religion or economic or other status
• Ensure equal opportunity and reduce inequalities of outcome, including by eliminating discriminatory laws, policies and practices and promoting appropriate legislation, policies and action in this regard
• Adopt policies, especially fiscal, wage and social protection policies, and progressively achieve greater equality
• Improve the regulation and monitoring of global financial markets and institutions and strengthen the implementation of such regulations
• Ensure enhanced representation and voice for developing countries in decision-making in global international economic and financial institutions in order to deliver more effective, credible, accountable and legitimate institutions
• Facilitate orderly, safe, regular and responsible migration and mobility of people, including through the implementation of planned and well-managed migration policies
• Implement the principle of special and differential treatment for developing countries, in particular least developed countries, in accordance with World Trade Organization agreements
• Encourage official development assistance and financial flows, including foreign direct investment, to States where the need is greatest, in particular least developed countries, African countries, small island developing States and landlocked developing countries, in accordance with their national plans and programmes
• By 2030, reduce to less than 3 per cent the transaction costs of migrant remittances and eliminate remittance corridors with costs higher than 5 per cent

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Sustainable cities and communities.

More than half of us  live in cities. By 2050, two-thirds of all humanity—6.5 billion people—will be urban. Sustainable development cannot be achieved without significantly transforming the way we build and manage our urban spaces.

The rapid growth of cities—a result of rising populations and increasing migration—has led to a boom in mega-cities, especially in the developing world, and slums are becoming a more significant feature of urban life.

Making cities sustainable means creating career and business opportunities, safe and affordable housing, and building resilient societies and economies. It involves investment in public transport, creating green public spaces, and improving urban planning and management in participatory and inclusive ways.

In 2018, 4.2 billion people, 55 percent of the world’s population, lived in cities. By 2050, the urban population is expected to reach 6.5 billion.

Cities occupy just 3 percent of the Earth’s land but account for 60 to 80 percent of energy consumption and at least 70 percent of carbon emissions.

828 million people are estimated to live in slums, and the number is rising.

In 1990, there were 10 cities with 10 million people or more; by 2014, the number of mega-cities rose to 28, and was expected to reach 33 by 2018. In the future, 9 out of 10 mega-cities will be in the developing world.

In the coming decades, 90 percent of urban expansion will be in the developing world.

The economic role of cities is significant. They generate about 80 percent of the global GDP.

• By 2030, ensure access for all to adequate, safe and affordable housing and basic services and upgrade slums
• By 2030, provide access to safe, affordable, accessible and sustainable transport systems for all, improving road safety, notably by expanding public transport, with special attention to the needs of those in vulnerable situations, women, children, persons with disabilities and older persons
• By 2030, enhance inclusive and sustainable urbanization and capacity for participatory, integrated and sustainable human settlement planning and management in all countries
• Strengthen efforts to protect and safeguard the world’s cultural and natural heritage
• By 2030, significantly reduce the number of deaths and the number of people affected and substantially decrease the direct economic losses relative to global gross domestic product caused by disasters, including water-related disasters, with a focus on protecting the poor and people in vulnerable situations
• By 2030, reduce the adverse per capita environmental impact of cities, including by paying special attention to air quality and municipal and other waste management
• By 2030, provide universal access to safe, inclusive and accessible, green and public spaces, in particular for women and children, older persons and persons with disabilities
• Support positive economic, social and environmental links between urban, peri-urban and rural areas by strengthening national and regional development planning
• By 2020, substantially increase the number of cities and human settlements adopting and implementing integrated policies and plans towards inclusion, resource efficiency, mitigation and adaptation to climate change, resilience to disasters, and develop and implement, in line with the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030, holistic disaster risk management at all levels
• Support least developed countries, including through financial and technical assistance, in building sustainable and resilient buildings utilizing local materials

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Responsible consumption and production.

Achieving economic growth and sustainable development requires that we urgently reduce our ecological footprint by changing the way we produce and consume goods and resources. Agriculture is the biggest user of water worldwide, and irrigation now claims close to 70 percent of all freshwater for human use.

The efficient management of our shared natural resources, and the way we dispose of toxic waste and pollutants, are important targets to achieve this goal. Encouraging industries, businesses and consumers to recycle and reduce waste is equally important, as is supporting developing countries to move towards more sustainable patterns of consumption by 2030.

A large share of the world population is still consuming far too little to meet even their basic needs.  Halving the per capita of global food waste at the retailer and consumer levels is also important for creating more efficient production and supply chains. This can help with food security, and shift us towards a more resource efficient economy.

1.3 billion tonnes of food is wasted every year, while almost 2 billion people go hungry or undernourished.

The food sector accounts for around 22 percent of total greenhouse gas emissions, largely from the conversion of forests into farmland.

Globally, 2 billion people are overweight or obese.

Only 3 percent of the world’s water is fresh (drinkable), and humans are using it faster than nature can replenish it.

If people everywhere switched to energy efficient lightbulbs, the world would save US$120 billion annually.

One-fifth of the world’s final energy consumption in 2013 was from renewable sources.

• Implement the 10-year framework of programmes on sustainable consumption and production, all countries taking action, with developed countries taking the lead, taking into account the development and capabilities of developing countries
• By 2030, achieve the sustainable management and efficient use of natural resources
• By 2030, halve per capita global food waste at the retail and consumer levels and reduce food losses along production and supply chains, including post-harvest losses
• By 2020, achieve the environmentally sound management of chemicals and all wastes throughout their life cycle, in accordance with agreed international frameworks, and significantly reduce their release to air, water and soil in order to minimize their adverse impacts on human health and the environment
• By 2030, substantially reduce waste generation through prevention, reduction, recycling and reuse
• Encourage companies, especially large and transnational companies, to adopt sustainable practices and to integrate sustainability information into their reporting cycle
• Promote public procurement practices that are sustainable, in accordance with national policies and priorities
• By 2030, ensure that people everywhere have the relevant information and awareness for sustainable development and lifestyles in harmony with nature
• Support developing countries to strengthen their scientific and technological capacity to move towards more sustainable patterns of consumption and production
• Develop and implement tools to monitor sustainable development impacts for sustainable tourism that creates jobs and promotes local culture and products
• Rationalize inefficient fossil-fuel subsidies that encourage wasteful consumption by removing market distortions, in accordance with national circumstances, including by restructuring taxation and phasing out those harmful subsidies, where they exist, to reflect their environmental impacts, taking fully into account the specific needs and conditions of developing countries and minimizing the possible adverse impacts on their development in a manner that protects the poor and the affected communities

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Climate action.

There is no country that is not experiencing the drastic effects of climate change. Greenhouse gas emissions are more than 50 percent higher than in 1990. Global warming is causing long-lasting changes to our climate system, which threatens irreversible consequences if we do not act.

The annual average economic losses from climate-related disasters are in the hundreds of billions of dollars. This is not to mention the human impact of geo-physical disasters, which are 91 percent climate-related, and which between 1998 and 2017 killed 1.3 million people, and left 4.4 billion injured. The goal aims to mobilize US$100 billion annually by 2020 to address the needs of developing countries to both adapt to climate change and invest in low-carbon development.

Supporting vulnerable regions will directly contribute not only to Goal 13 but also to the other SDGs. These actions must also go hand in hand with efforts to integrate disaster risk measures, sustainable natural resource management, and human security into national development strategies. It is still possible, with strong political will, increased investment, and using existing technology, to limit the increase in global mean temperature to two degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, aiming at 1.5 ° C, but this requires urgent and ambitious collective action.

As of 2017 humans are estimated to have caused approximately 1.0°C of global warming above pre-industrial levels.

Sea levels have risen by about 20 cm (8 inches) since 1880 and are projected to rise another 30–122 cm (1 to 4 feet) by 2100.

To limit warming to 1.5C, global net CO2 emissions must drop by 45% between 2010 and 2030, and reach net zero around 2050.

Climate pledges under The Paris Agreement cover only one third of the emissions reductions needed to keep the world below 2°C.

Bold climate action could trigger at least US$26 trillion in economic benefits by 2030.

The energy sector alone will create around 18 million more jobs by 2030, focused specifically on sustainable energy.

• Strengthen resilience and adaptive capacity to climate-related hazards and natural disasters in all countries
• Integrate climate change measures into national policies, strategies and planning
• Improve education, awareness-raising and human and institutional capacity on climate change mitigation, adaptation, impact reduction and early warning
• Implement the commitment undertaken by developed-country parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change to a goal of mobilizing jointly $100 billion annually by 2020 from all sources to address the needs of developing countries in the context of meaningful mitigation actions and transparency on implementation and fully operationalize the Green Climate Fund through its capitalization as soon as possible
• Promote mechanisms for raising capacity for effective climate change-related planning and management in least developed countries and small island developing States, including focusing on women, youth and local and marginalized communities

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Life below water.

The world’s oceans – their temperature, chemistry, currents and life – drive global systems that make the Earth habitable for humankind. How we manage this vital resource is essential for humanity as a whole, and to counterbalance the effects of climate change.

Over three billion people depend on marine and coastal biodiversity for their livelihoods. However, today we are seeing 30 percent of the world’s fish stocks overexploited, reaching below the level at which they can produce sustainable yields.

Oceans also absorb about 30 percent of the carbon dioxide produced by humans, and we are seeing a 26 percent rise in ocean acidification since the beginning of the industrial revolution. Marine pollution, an overwhelming majority of which comes from land-based sources, is reaching alarming levels, with an average of 13,000 pieces of plastic litter to be found on every square kilometre of ocean.

The SDGs aim to sustainably manage and protect marine and coastal ecosystems from pollution, as well as address the impacts of ocean acidification. Enhancing conservation and the sustainable use of ocean-based resources through international law will also help mitigate some of the challenges facing our oceans.

The ocean covers three quarters of the Earth’s surface and represents 99 percent of the living space on the planet by volume.

The ocean contains nearly 200,000 identified species, but actual numbers may lie in the millions.

As much as 40 percent of the ocean is heavily affected by pollution, depleted fisheries, loss of coastal habitats and other human activities.

The ocean absorbs about 30 percent of carbon dioxide produced by humans, buffering the impacts of global warming.

More than 3 billion people depend on marine and coastal biodiversity for their livelihoods.

The market value of marine and coastal resources and industries is estimated at US$3 trillion per year, about 5 percent of global GDP.

• By 2025, prevent and significantly reduce marine pollution of all kinds, in particular from land-based activities, including marine debris and nutrient pollution
• By 2020, sustainably manage and protect marine and coastal ecosystems to avoid significant adverse impacts, including by strengthening their resilience, and take action for their restoration in order to achieve healthy and productive oceans
• Minimize and address the impacts of ocean acidification, including through enhanced scientific cooperation at all levels
• By 2020, effectively regulate harvesting and end overfishing, illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing and destructive fishing practices and implement science-based management plans, in order to restore fish stocks in the shortest time feasible, at least to levels that can produce maximum sustainable yield as determined by their biological characteristics
• By 2020, conserve at least 10 per cent of coastal and marine areas, consistent with national and international law and based on the best available scientific information
• By 2020, prohibit certain forms of fisheries subsidies which contribute to overcapacity and overfishing, eliminate subsidies that contribute to illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing and refrain from introducing new such subsidies, recognizing that appropriate and effective special and differential treatment for developing and least developed countries should be an integral part of the World Trade Organization fisheries subsidies negotiation
• By 2030, increase the economic benefits to Small Island developing States and least developed countries from the sustainable use of marine resources, including through sustainable management of fisheries, aquaculture and tourism
• Increase scientific knowledge, develop research capacity and transfer marine technology, taking into account the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission Criteria and Guidelines on the Transfer of Marine Technology, in order to improve ocean health and to enhance the contribution of marine biodiversity to the development of developing countries, in particular small island developing States and least developed countries
• Provide access for small-scale artisanal fishers to marine resources and markets
• Enhance the conservation and sustainable use of oceans and their resources by implementing international law as reflected in UNCLOS, which provides the legal framework for the conservation and sustainable use of oceans and their resources, as recalled in paragraph 158 of The Future We Want

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Life on land.

Human life depends on the earth as much as the ocean for our sustenance and livelihoods. Plant life provides 80 percent of the human diet, and we rely on agriculture as an important economic resources. Forests cover 30 percent of the Earth’s surface, provide vital habitats for millions of species, and important sources for clean air and water, as well as being crucial for combating climate change.

Every year, 13 million hectares of forests are lost, while the persistent degradation of drylands has led to the desertification of 3.6 billion hectares, disproportionately affecting poor communities.

While 15 percent of land is protected, biodiversity is still at risk. Nearly 7,000 species of animals and plants have been illegally traded. Wildlife trafficking not only erodes biodiversity, but creates insecurity, fuels conflict, and feeds corruption.

Urgent action must be taken to reduce the loss of natural habitats and biodiversity which are part of our common heritage and support global food and water security, climate change mitigation and adaptation, and peace and security.

Around 1.6 billion people depend on forests for their livelihoods.

Forests are home to more than 80 percent of all terrestrial species of animals, plants and insects.

2.6 billion people depend directly on agriculture for a living.

Nature-based climate solutions can contribute about a third of CO2 reductions by 2030.

The value of ecosystems to human livelihoods and well-being is $US125 trillion per year.v

Mountain regions provide 60-80 percent of the Earth's fresh water.

• By 2020, ensure the conservation, restoration and sustainable use of terrestrial and inland freshwater ecosystems and their services, in particular forests, wetlands, mountains and drylands, in line with obligations under international agreements
• By 2020, promote the implementation of sustainable management of all types of forests, halt deforestation, restore degraded forests and substantially increase afforestation and reforestation globally
• By 2030, combat desertification, restore degraded land and soil, including land affected by desertification, drought and floods, and strive to achieve a land degradation-neutral world
• By 2030, ensure the conservation of mountain ecosystems, including their biodiversity, in order to enhance their capacity to provide benefits that are essential for sustainable development
• Take urgent and significant action to reduce the degradation of natural habitats, halt the loss of biodiversity and, by 2020, protect and prevent the extinction of threatened species
• Promote fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising from the utilization of genetic resources and promote appropriate access to such resources, as internationally agreed
• Take urgent action to end poaching and trafficking of protected species of flora and fauna and address both demand and supply of illegal wildlife products
• By 2020, introduce measures to prevent the introduction and significantly reduce the impact of invasive alien species on land and water ecosystems and control or eradicate the priority species
• By 2020, integrate ecosystem and biodiversity values into national and local planning, development processes, poverty reduction strategies and accounts
• Mobilize and significantly increase financial resources from all sources to conserve and sustainably use biodiversity and ecosystems
• Mobilize significant resources from all sources and at all levels to finance sustainable forest management and provide adequate incentives to developing countries to advance such management, including for conservation and reforestation
• Enhance global support for efforts to combat poaching and trafficking of protected species, including by increasing the capacity of local communities to pursue sustainable livelihood opportunities

Peace, justice and strong institutions

We cannot hope for sustainable development without peace, stability, human rights and effective governance, based on the rule of law. Yet our world is increasingly divided. Some regions enjoy peace, security and prosperity, while others fall into seemingly endless cycles of conflict and violence. This is not inevitable and must be addressed.

Armed violence and insecurity have a destructive impact on a country’s development, affecting economic growth, and often resulting in grievances that last for generations. Sexual violence, crime, exploitation and torture are also prevalent where there is conflict, or no rule of law, and countries must take measures to protect those who are most at risk

The SDGs aim to significantly reduce all forms of violence, and work with governments and communities to end conflict and insecurity. Promoting the rule of law and human rights are key to this process, as is reducing the flow of illicit arms and strengthening the participation of developing countries in the institutions of global governance.

By the end of 2017, 68.5 million people had been forcibly displaced as a result of persecution, conflict, violence or human rights violations.

There are at least 10 million stateless people who have been denied nationality and its related rights.

Corruption, bribery, theft and tax evasion cost developing countries US$1.26 trillion per year.

49 countries lack laws protecting women from domestic violence.

In 46 countries, women now hold more than 30 percent of seats in at least one chamber of national parliament.

1 billion people are legally ‘invisible’ because they cannot prove who they are. This includes an estimated 625 million children under 14 whose births were never registered.

• Significantly reduce all forms of violence and related death rates everywhere
• End abuse, exploitation, trafficking and all forms of violence against and torture of children
• Promote the rule of law at the national and international levels and ensure equal access to justice for all
• By 2030, significantly reduce illicit financial and arms flows, strengthen the recovery and return of stolen assets and combat all forms of organized crime
• Substantially reduce corruption and bribery in all their forms
• Develop effective, accountable and transparent institutions at all levels
• Ensure responsive, inclusive, participatory and representative decision-making at all levels
• Broaden and strengthen the participation of developing countries in the institutions of global governance
• By 2030, provide legal identity for all, including birth registration
• Ensure public access to information and protect fundamental freedoms, in accordance with national legislation and international agreements
• Strengthen relevant national institutions, including through international cooperation, for building capacity at all levels, in particular in developing countries, to prevent violence and combat terrorism and crime
• Promote and enforce non-discriminatory laws and policies for sustainable development

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Partnerships for the goals.

The SDGs can only be realized with strong global partnerships and cooperation. Official Development Assistance remained steady but below target, at US$147 billion in 2017. While humanitarian crises brought on by conflict or natural disasters continue to demand more financial resources and aid. Many countries also require Official Development Assistance to encourage growth and trade.

The world is more interconnected than ever. Improving access to technology and knowledge is an important way to share ideas and foster innovation. Coordinating policies to help developing countries manage their debt, as well as promoting investment for the least developed, is vital for sustainable growth and development.

The goals aim to enhance North-South and South-South cooperation by supporting national plans to achieve all the targets. Promoting international trade, and helping developing countries increase their exports is all part of achieving a universal rules-based and equitable trading system that is fair and open and benefits all.

The UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) says achieving SDGs will require US$5 trillion to $7 trillion in annual investment.

Total official development assistance reached US$147.2 billion in 2017.

In 2017, international remittances totaled US$613 billion; 76 percent of it went to developing countries.

In 2016, 6 countries met the international target to keep official development assistance at or above 0.7 percent of gross national income.

Sustainable and responsible investments represent high-potential sources of capital for SDGs. As of 2016, US$18.2 trillion was invested in this asset class.

The bond market for sustainable business is growing. In 2018 global green bonds reached US$155.5billion, up 78 percent from previous year.

• Strengthen domestic resource mobilization, including through international support to developing countries, to improve domestic capacity for tax and other revenue collection
• Developed countries to implement fully their official development assistance commitments, including the commitment by many developed countries to achieve the target of 0.7 per cent of ODA/GNI to developing countries and 0.15 to 0.20 per cent of ODA/GNI to least developed countries ODA providers are encouraged to consider setting a target to provide at least 0.20 per cent of ODA/GNI to least developed countries
• Mobilize additional financial resources for developing countries from multiple sources
• Assist developing countries in attaining long-term debt sustainability through coordinated policies aimed at fostering debt financing, debt relief and debt restructuring, as appropriate, and address the external debt of highly indebted poor countries to reduce debt distress
• Adopt and implement investment promotion regimes for least developed countries  
• Enhance North-South, South-South and triangular regional and international cooperation on and access to science, technology and innovation and enhance knowledge sharing on mutually agreed terms, including through improved coordination among existing mechanisms, in particular at the United Nations level, and through a global technology facilitation mechanism
• Promote the development, transfer, dissemination and diffusion of environmentally sound technologies to developing countries on favourable terms, including on concessional and preferential terms, as mutually agreed
• Fully operationalize the technology bank and science, technology and innovation capacity-building mechanism for least developed countries by 2017 and enhance the use of enabling technology, in particular information and communications technology  

Capacity building

• Enhance international support for implementing effective and targeted capacity-building in developing countries to support national plans to implement all the sustainable development goals, including through North-South, South-South and triangular cooperation  
• Promote a universal, rules-based, open, non-discriminatory and equitable multilateral trading system under the World Trade Organization, including through the conclusion of negotiations under its Doha Development Agenda
• Significantly increase the exports of developing countries, in particular with a view to doubling the least developed countries’ share of global exports by 2020
• Realize timely implementation of duty-free and quota-free market access on a lasting basis for all least developed countries, consistent with World Trade Organization decisions, including by ensuring that preferential rules of origin applicable to imports from least developed countries are transparent and simple, and contribute to facilitating market access  

Systemic issues

Policy and institutional coherence

• Enhance global macroeconomic stability, including through policy coordination and policy coherence
• Enhance policy coherence for sustainable development
• Respect each country’s policy space and leadership to establish and implement policies for poverty eradication and sustainable development  

Multi-stakeholder partnerships

• Enhance the global partnership for sustainable development, complemented by multi-stakeholder partnerships that mobilize and share knowledge, expertise, technology and financial resources, to support the achievement of the sustainable development goals in all countries, in particular developing countries
• Encourage and promote effective public, public-private and civil society partnerships, building on the experience and resourcing strategies of partnerships  

Data, monitoring and accountability

• By 2020, enhance capacity-building support to developing countries, including for least developed countries and small island developing States, to increase significantly the availability of high-quality, timely and reliable data disaggregated by income, gender, age, race, ethnicity, migratory status, disability, geographic location and other characteristics relevant in national contexts
• By 2030, build on existing initiatives to develop measurements of progress on sustainable development that complement gross domestic product, and support statistical capacity-building in developing countries

Sustainable Development Goals Integration

Interactives:SOFI 2024

Interactives, understanding food insecurity.

See the latest estimates of undernourishment and food insecurity, plus explore the issue through the lenses of urbanization and gender

Interactive story Hunger map Putting a number on hunger

Director-General

Famine conditions in parts of Sudan: FAO urges at scale life-saving assistance to boost local food production

New data reveals that escalating violence has pushed parts of North Darfur into famine

Restricted local food production exacerbates the humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip

Intensified hostilities, access constraints and damage to agriculture have heightened acute food insecurity for Gazans.

Director-General meets with His Majesty King Letsie III of the Kingdom of Lesotho

QU Dongyu reaffirmed his commitment to supporting Lesotho to transform its agrifood systems and improve rural livelihoods

Publication

The state of food security and nutrition in the world 2024.

Every year, SOFI monitors and analyses the world’s progress towards ending hunger, achieving food security and improving nutrition. Read the report.

Right to foods for a better life and a better future

‘Foods’ stands for diversity, nutrition, affordability, and safety. Learn more about this year's World Food Day theme.

FAO response to global food security challenges

Data analyses, policy recommendations, and actions on the ground.

Interactive story

Explore the issue of food insecurity through the lenses of urbanization and gender.

Better data, better policies, better diets

The FAO/WHO GIFT platform provides quantitative individual food consumption data from all around the world.

Give your skills a boost

Access free online courses on sustainability, natural resource management and more.

Join the conversation

This year's World Food Day talks about “foods”

How FAO is working to transform agrifood systems so there is good food for all

Training women farmers in Ghana in better production of fonio

Voices of impact.

Achieving Better Environment in Asia-Pacific through forest and landscape restoration

Watch the video to see how forest and landscape restoration is helping to achieve a better environment in the Philippines.

Camelids play a key role in the culture, economy, food security and livelihoods

From alpacas to Bactrian camels, dromedaries, guanacos, llamas, and vicuñas, camelids contribute to food security, nutrition and economic growth.

How can we achieve Zero Hunger

There is enough food to feed the entire population. Yet there are 821 million people in the world who are hungry. Achieving Zero Hunger means meeting the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) to ensure food security for everyone across the globe. So how can we achieve Zero Hunger by 2030?

FAO Food Price Index 2021-2024

Source: https://www.fao.org/worldfoodsituation/foodpricesindex/en/

Transparency is key to FAO’s mission

Our new transparency portal shows how and where our resources are used and the results we have achieved. Explore the portal now.

Medium Term Plan and Programme of Work

The Director-General’s Medium Term Plan (Reviewed) 2022-25 and Programme of Work and Budget 2024-25.

FAO Data Lab

The FAO Data Lab for Statistical Innovation modernizes the statistical business process, with a specific focus on emergency contexts, when having access to timely information is very important.

FAO and the SDGs

FAO supports governments and partners to design the right policies and programmes to end hunger, promote food security and promote sustainable agriculture for millions of people around the world.

Hover the mouse over an SDG icon for more information

A world free from hunger and malnutrition where food and agriculture contributes to improving the living standards of all

FAO works with governments and partners to empower some of the world’s most marginalized people to end rural poverty.

FAO helps ensure food security by developing ways of growing food that will work in the future so that millions of people don’t go hungry.

Good health starts with nutrition. FAO sets global standards and works with governments and the private sector to ensure food quality and safety throughout the food chain.

FAO invests in educational systems for rural communities and supports improved access to primary education and school meals in order to create equal opportunities for all and chances of lifelong learning.

FAO supports gender equality in the agricultural sector in an effort to raise levels of nutrition in local communities and improve agricultural productivity.

FAO works with governments to ensure water use in agriculture is made more efficient, equitable and environmentally friendly.

FAO promotes the use of renewable energies and works to ensure access to modern energy services across the food chain.

FAO seeks better economic opportunities for all by investing in sustainable agricultural practices and food systems that reduce inequalities and create decent jobs.

FAO seeks to secure a future for rural communities via investments in transportation, irrigation, food storage facilities and communication technologies.

FAO works with countries and partners to generate employment in rural areas, ensure access to natural resources for the most vulnerable and connect farmers to markets.

FAO works to improve urban healthcare, water quality and rethink city region food systems to help deter the negative effects of sprawling urbanisation.

FAO coordinates major global initiatives and projects to tackle food waste and loss, partnering with international organisations, the private sector and civil society.

FAO supports countries in responding to the threats of climate change by providing advice, data and tools for better agricultural policies and practices.

FAO, in partnership with governments and fishing communities, implements best practices in fisheries to ensure our oceans are protected as a means of livelihoods.

FAO promotes sustainable approaches to natural resource management and supports endeavours that promote a balance between conservation and development initiatives.

FAO plays a critical role in peacebuilding, restoring rural livelihoods, building resilience and participatory approaches to policymaking.

FAO acts as a neutral policymaking forum and develops partnerships with all concerned with food and agriculture to ensure a world free from hunger.

Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems.

Fao brief - july 29.

In this episode, a new UN report reveals 1/11 faced hunger in 2023; an FAO report warns rising climate stress on forests as demand grows; and $52 million for an FAO project in Malawi.

TEDx Talks: Are We Ready to End World Hunger?

This spring at TEDx OakLawn, I shared a brief history of the fight against global hunger – and how we’re closer to winning it than ever before.

Albert Einstein’s brain was dissected in 1955, but the world wouldn’t find out for another 20 years. When the news broke that a scientist had been secretly studying Einstein’s grey matter, universities and museums the world around fought to get a piece of the action—quite literally.

But amid the rancor and debate, renowned paleontologist Steven J. Gould quietly recorded this profound thought: “I am, somehow, less interested in the weight and convolutions of Einstein’s brain than in the near certainty that people of equal talent have lived and died in cotton fields and sweatshops.”

Watch The Full Video:

I think about this almost daily in my job at the World Food Program USA, because an even greater number have died of hunger. We see it in the news everyday—a rise in the absolute number of hungry people, an unprecedented four looming famines and of more hungry people displaced from their homes because of violence, conflict and persecution than any other time since the Second World War.

But it’s worth recalling a quote from the author, F. Scott Fitzgerald: “The test of true intelligence,” he wrote, “is the ability to hold two contradictory thoughts at the same time.” This is fundamentally true of global hunger today. Because over the last 20 years, over 200 million people have been lifted out of hunger. Famines still occur, but they kill far fewer people than ever before thanks to early warning systems and improved humanitarian responses. We have never had better tools to fight food insecurity.

At the risk of quoting another 20th century author, in the fight to end hunger, it is the best of times and it is the worst of times. So while the headlines can feel disheartening, as a person that follows global hunger trends for a living, I can tell you this with absolute certainty: We are winning the long game in the fight to end hunger.

The “Availability Heuristic”

Consider these two headlines:

• World Faces ‘Unprecedented’ Hunger as Famine Threatens Four Countries
• World Hunger is Increasing Thanks to Wars and Climate Change 

Stories like this come at us at warp speed today—a never-ending stream of push notifications onto cell phones that never leave our hands.

Between 2015 and 2016, the number of hungry people on the planet rose from 777 million to 815 million, driven by a proliferation of man-made crises. Increases in the outright number of hungry people in the world have happened in the past, as recently as a decade ago following the global food price spike crises of 2007/8. While there are important (and worrying) reasons to believe that this upward tick may be unique relative to previous “relapses,” in the words of Steven Pinker: “It would be astonishing if any measure of human behavior with all its vicissitudes ticked downward by a constant amount per unit of time, decade after decade and century after century.” He states further, “Seeing how journalistic habits and cognitive biases bring out the worst in each other, how do we soundly appraise the state of the world? The answer is to count.”

More specifically, we count further back in time. While it is true that the number of hungry people is on the rise again, the general trend in hunger over the past decade tells a far different story (Figure 2). It wasn’t long ago, in fact, that we were speaking of a billion hungry people on the planet. This recent spikes hides a brighter medium and long-term trend.

As we broaden our lens even further, there is more good news. Thanks to research by Alex de Waal, we’re able to see dramatic progress in with regard to famine prevention and response specifically (Figure 3). In his latest book Mass Starvation: The History and Future of Famine , de Waal shows that deaths from famine today are occurring at a fraction of what they have historically. “Our ultimate goal,” writes de Waal, “is to render mass starvation so morally toxic, that it is universally publicly vilified. We aim to make mass starvation unthinkable, such that political and military leaders in a position to inflict it or fail to prevent it, will unhesitatingly ensure that it does not occur, and the public will demand this of them.” There is some evidence to suggest that we’re doing just that.

In short, we can fight the availability heuristic when we choose to take a step back. It is when we look at progress in the long arc of human history that we see just how close we are to ending hunger for good. Hunger is not just a challenge of our generation—it is a battle that human beings have been fighting for millennia. And the story of our progress in ending hunger falls into clear stages, or quarters if you’ll allow a football reference. This is how that game has played out.

The First Quarter

In the first quarter, we fought a battle against population growth. Thomas Malthus, the English philosopher and cleric, prophesized in the 1798 in his book, Essay on the Principle of Population , that food production would not keep pace with population growth, leading to resource competition, violent conflict and mass starvation. It was through war and suffering that equilibrium would be returned to the global food system.

Thus began the battle between “Malthusians,” like Thomas, and so-called “Cornucopians”—those that thought humans would successfully engineer their way out the population dilemma. The Green Revolution in the 1960s and 70s successfully staved off Malthus’ doomsday scenario on a global scale, with industrial agriculture and improved seeds and practices winning the day.

When Malthus wrote his famous essay, the Earth was home to about a billion people. Today, we number over seven billion—and we produce over 2,500 calories for every man, woman and child on the planet. And while we will need to increase production by 50 to 70 percent to meet a population approaching 10 billion by 2050, this is well within our reach.

Thomas Malthus’s doomsday population bomb theory—carried forward by modern theorists like Paul Ehrlich—has been called a “zombie concept” by experts like Alex de Waal, because it is one that “scholars of agricultural economics have continually refuted, but it still keeps coming back to life to torment the living.” Generations after Malthus, the idea that population growth will outstrip food production has been thoroughly debunked.

The Second Quarter

In the second quarter, the central challenge in feeding the world was a natural extension of the first. If we accept that we can feed a growing human population, the next logical question is whether we can do it sustainably. Years of industrial agriculture and monoculture production wreaked havoc on our environment. After all, the same technology that fueled our bombs in the Second World War had been put to work in our fields. It can take 1,000 years to develop an inch of topsoil through natural processes, and we did away with a lot of it in just decades.

These are fragile systems, and we know more about the surface of the moon than the three feet of soil beneath us. David Attenborough once said, “If you believe you can have infinite growth on a finite planet, then you are either a madman or an economist.” I might add 20th Century farmers to this list.

But it was in this quarter that we started to appreciate ecological tipping points and began to talk about things like “planetary boundaries.” We learned that our agricultural practices were contributing to 25 percent of all global greenhouse gas emissions, making climate change worse. As a general rule-of-thumb, climate scientists expect a 10 percent drop in crop yields for every one degree Celsius rise in mean global temperatures. We’re on pace for three degree increase by the close of the century. As many as 200 million people will be pushed into poverty and hunger by climate change if left unchecked.

Carryover Cornucopians from the first quarter clashed with ecologists like William Vogt in the second. Environmentalists sounded the alarm bells, arguing for the complete transformation of our food systems toward more sustainable models. Charles C. Mann refers to these two schools of thought as “wizards” and “prophets”— Wizards engineering their way out of this new ecological problem following the Cornucopian playbook and prophets faithfully stewarding the planet’s limited resources.

As a result, and in a hand-in-hand walk between Wizards and Prophets (sometimes begrudgingly so), we’ve already started to roll out common sense strategies like cover cropping and zero till agriculture. We developed new plant varieties using genetic engineering—not for commercial pesticide resistance like you so often read in the news, but to deal with things saltwater intrusion from sea level rise and drought from changing rainfall patterns. We’ve meticulously cataloged seeds and we’ve seen dramatic growth and interest in local food production. Hypotheses like “can organic agriculture feed the world” have been thoroughly tested, and the results are promising.

The Third Quarter

In the third quarter, we acknowledged the link between agriculture and nutrition. As strange as it may sound, we long considered agriculture and nutrition as two distinct concepts. Thanks to research on child and maternal health, we know that children who do not receive proper nutrition in their first thousand days of life will experience a lifetime of negative affects —physical stunting, reduced educational achievement and economic performance. These impacts costs economies trillions of dollars each year.

Meanwhile, in the industrialized world—and increasingly in developing countries—societies face the dual burden of hunger alongside obesity. At least as many people are obese on this planet as are hungry, well over a billion people. Josette Sheeran, former Executive Director of the World Food Programme, referred to our improved understanding of nutrition as the latest “burden of knowledge” facing hunger fighters.

We’ve translated this burden into specialized food aid products like “Plumpy’Nut” that can bring a child back from the brink of starvation. We’ve bio-fortified staple crops with Vitamin A and Zinc and other vitamins and minerals—so effectively that the minds behind this were awarded the World Food Prize in 2016. We’ve renewed efforts to get mothers breastfeeding around the world. This is how we’re closing out the third quarter. We’ve moved from trying to feed the world to trying to nourish the world. The next big idea that changes the course of humanity—the next Einstein-sized idea—may come from a truly unsuspecting place, but it will not come from the mind of a child who is stunted.

Across these quarters, it is not by the immutable laws of physics that hunger has declined—quite the opposite. It has been through the unlikely march of human progress in the face of overwhelming odds. Hunger hasn’t declined naturally, someone had to act. It was our early ancestors domesticating wheat in the Fertile Crescent 10,000 years ago; it was Norman Borlaug developing dwarf wheat in a laboratory in Mexico that would spark the Green Revolution; it was Senator George McGovern shepherding the idea of a World Food Programme into reality.

In the long struggle between humans and their natural environment, humans have been putting their thumb on the scale in ways big and small, tipping the balance in our favor—“Wizards” and “Prophets,” “Malthusians” and “Cornucopians” alike.

So let me say this again: We are winning the long game in the fight to end hunger. We asked ourselves, “Can we end hunger in the face of population growth?” We answered a resounding yes. We asked ourselves, “Can we end hunger sustainably in the face of population growth?” We wrote a playbook and we’re rolling it out. We asked ourselves, “Can we end hunger sustainably and nutritiously in the face of population growth?” That’s the mission that we’re currently on.

Human beings have built a doomsday bunker for plant genetic material in the frozen arctic of Norway. We are leveraging the big-data revolution to guide our tractors with satellite precision. WFP has adopted block-chain technology —the foundation of bitcoin and cryptocurrencies—to deliver humanitarian assistance and improve the efficiency of their supply chains. Meanwhile, in blue skies research, scientists are developing plant varieties that photosynthesize more efficiently and non-leguminous crops that fix nitrogen in the soil. We are questioning the way we do things. We are even questioning whether food needs soil—there has been a dramatic increase in hydroponics and vertical gardening. We have thrown everything we have at the problem of hunger—and it’s finally sticking, at scale.

This is good news story, to be sure, but this narrative is not meant to lull us into apathy. Bending the hunger curve toward zero has long relied on the extreme urgency of now. Trends only emerge as time piles up, and positive trends like the one we’ve experienced in global hunger only happen when we take concerted and sustained action. We cannot afford to take our eye off the ball, because we’re entering into the fourth quarter.

The Fourth Quarter

Many a game has been lost in the fourth quarter. In this quarter, the long trajectory of progress in the fight to end hunger meets head-on with a rise in global conflict. We’ve seen an increase in state fragility in the world. Over 60 percent of the world’s hungry live in conflict-affected countries. Almost 122 million, or 75 percent, of stunted children under age five live in these same places. Man-made conflict drives 80 percent of humanitarian spending while natural disaster accounts for just one in every five dollars—a complete reversal from 20 years earlier.

But here is what is important. This collision between hunger and conflict forces us to acknowledge the root political causes of hunger—something we have long ignored or at least under-appreciated. Hunger has always been a technical problem—“How do we grow more, better?” But we’ve done away with those technical barriers in the first three quarters. The only remaining hurdle to ending hunger for all time is abundantly political.

Once we accept that food security is fundamental to peace and security, we are forced to do something about it. It’s not just a matter of doing more than the next donor on moral or economic grounds or making investments in agricultural to tick a box. In the fourth quarter, food security will be seen as a pillar of global stability. And it needs to be, because that’s how we finally get the job done.

George McGovern, a former U.S. Senator and prominent anti-hunger advocate, wrote in his 2000 book, The Third Freedom: Ending Hunger in our Time , “I give you my word that anyone who looks honestly at world hunger and measures the cost of ending it for all time will conclude that this is a bargain well worth seizing.”

We are the Zero Hunger Generation—the first generation in human history capable of seizing that bargain. Pause for a moment and think about what that means in practice. Human beings have been on this Earth for around 150,000 years. For the first 149,950, the baseline condition for humanity has been poverty, hunger and desperation. Yet here you are, reading this in 2018 (or beyond) with all of the tools to finally watch hunger stop.

In the long arc of human history, the world has never been more full of promise.

Watch The Full Video

*Chase Sova is the senior director of public policy at WFP USA. 

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Hunger afflicts one in ten globally, UN report finds

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As many as 783 million people faced hunger worldwide in 2022 in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, repeated weather shocks and conflicts, including in Ukraine, according to a study launched by five United Nations agencies on Wednesday.

The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World revealed that between 691 and 783 million people faced hunger in 2022, with a mid-range of 735 million, representing an increase of 122 million people compared to 2019. It also adds up to a grim warning, potentially jeopardizing the  Sustainable Development Goal of ending hunger .

“Overall, we need an intense and immediate global effort to rescue the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). We must build resilience against the crises and shocks that drive food insecurity – from conflict to climate,” UN Secretary-General António Guterres said in a video message launching the report. 

It shows that hunger rose in Western Asia, Caribbean and across Africa, where one in five people — more than twice the global average — faced hunger. Only Asia and Latin America observed progress in improving food security.

In addition to rising hunger, the capacity of people to access healthy diets also deteriorated across the world. More than 3.1 billion people globally unable to afford a healthy diet in 2021, the report issued jointly by the Food and Agriculture Organization ( FAO ), International Fund for Agricultural Development ( IFAD ), UN Children’s Fund ( UNICEF ), World Health Organization ( WHO ) and World Food Programme ( WFP ) said.

Malnutrition among children

According to the report, 148 million children under five were stunted (a condition marked by low height per age), 45 million were wasted (low weight), and 37 million were overweight, often an indicator of poor nutrition.

“Malnutrition is a major threat to children’s survival, growth and development,” UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell said.

Children’s malnutrition also displays differently in urban and rural settings, the report added, noting that the prevalence of child stunting was higher in the countryside (35.8 per cent) than in urban areas (22.4 per cent).

Similarly, wasting was higher in rural areas (10.5 per cent) compared to urban areas (7.7 per cent), while being overweight is slightly more prevalent in urban areas (5.4 per cent) compared to rural areas (3.5 per cent).

“The scale of the nutrition crisis demands a stronger response focused on children, including prioritizing access to nutritious and affordable diets and essential nutrition services, protecting children and adolescents from nutrient-poor, ultra-processed foods, and strengthening food and nutrition supply chains including for fortified and therapeutic foods for children,” Ms. Russell said.

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End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture

Rapid economic growth and increased agricultural productivity over the past two decades has seen the proportion of undernourished people drop by almost half.

Many developing countries that used to suffer from famine and hunger can now meet the nutritional needs of the most vulnerable. Central and East Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean have all made huge progress in eradicating extreme hunger.

These are all significant achievements in reaching the targets set out by the first Millennium Development Goals. Unfortunately, extreme hunger and malnutrition remain a huge barrier to development in many countries. 795 million people are estimated to be chronically undernourished as of 2014, often as a direct consequence of environmental degradation, drought and loss of biodiversity. Over 90 million children under the age of five are dangerously underweight. And one person in every four still goes hungry in Africa.

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) aim to end all forms of hunger and malnutrition by 2030, making sure all people – especially children and the more vulnerable – have access to sufficient and nutritious food all year round. This involves promoting sustainable agricultural practices: improving the livelihoods and capacities of small scale famers, allowing equal access to land, technology and markets. It also requires international cooperation to ensure investment in infrastructure and technology to improve agricultural productivity.

Together with the other goals set out here, we can end hunger by 2030.

Zero Hunger is one of 17 Global Goals that make up the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development . An integrated approach is crucial for progress across the multiple goals.

Learn more about the targets for Goal 2 .

• Current estimates are that nearly 690 million people are hungry, or 8.9 percent of the world population – up by 10 million people in one year and by nearly 60 million in five years.
• The majority of the world’s undernourished – 381 million – are still found in Asia. More than 250 million live in Africa, where the number of undernourished is growing faster than anywhere in the world.
• In 2019, close to 750 million – or nearly one in ten people in the world – were exposed to severe levels of food insecurity.
• An estimated 2 billion people in the world did not have regular access to safe, nutritious and sufficient food in 2019.
• If recent trends continue , the number of people affected by hunger will surpass 840 million by 2030, or 9.8 percent of the global population.
• 144 million children under age 5 were affected by stunting in 2019, with three quarters living in Southern Asia and sub-Saharan Africa.
• In 2019, 6.9 per cent (or 47 million) children under 5 were affected by wasting, or acute undernutrition, a condition caused by limited nutrient intake and infection.
• By 2030, end hunger and ensure access by all people, in particular the poor and people in vulnerable situations, including infants, to safe, nutritious and sufficient food all year round
• By 2030, end all forms of malnutrition, including achieving, by 2025, the internationally agreed targets on stunting and wasting in children under 5 years of age, and address the nutritional needs of adolescent girls, pregnant and lactating women and older persons
• By 2030, double the agricultural productivity and incomes of small-scale food producers, in particular women, indigenous peoples, family farmers, pastoralists and fishers, including through secure and equal access to land, other productive resources and inputs, knowledge, financial services, markets and opportunities for value addition and non-farm employment
• By 2030, ensure sustainable food production systems and implement resilient agricultural practices that increase productivity and production, that help maintain ecosystems, that strengthen capacity for adaptation to climate change, extreme weather, drought, flooding and other disasters and that progressively improve land and soil quality
• By 2020, maintain the genetic diversity of seeds, cultivated plants and farmed and domesticated animals and their related wild species, including through soundly managed and diversified seed and plant banks at the national, regional and international levels, and promote access to and fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from the utilization of genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge, as internationally agreed
• Increase investment, including through enhanced international cooperation, in rural infrastructure, agricultural research and extension services, technology development and plant and livestock gene banks in order to enhance agricultural productive capacity in developing countries, in particular least developed countries
• Correct and prevent trade restrictions and distortions in world agricultural markets, including through the parallel elimination of all forms of agricultural export subsidies and all export measures with equivalent effect, in accordance with the mandate of the Doha Development Round
• Adopt measures to ensure the proper functioning of food commodity markets and their derivatives and facilitate timely access to market information, including on food reserves, in order to help limit extreme food price volatility
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What do we mean by Zero Hunger?

Jan 21, 2022

One of the main Sustainable Development Goals for 2030 is to reach Zero Hunger. But what does that actually mean? Here’s what we mean by a phrase that’s both fairly straightforward and a tall order.

Zero Hunger: Definition and targets

The UN’s definition of Zero Hunger goes beyond a single number. A more complete rundown of the second Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) is to “end hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture.”

To measure the success of achieving this, the UN outlines five targets to indicate our progress towards Zero Hunger (more on each of these below):

Access to safe, nutritious, and sufficient food year-round

End malnutrition in all its forms.

• Increase agricultural productivity
• Sustainable food systems and agricultural resilience
• Diversified crops and seeds

The Sustainable Development Goals & Decade of Action — explained

We’re less than 10 years away from the deadline to meet the UN's 17 Sustainable Development Goals. Here’s what that means.

Why Zero Hunger matters

Simply put, we can’t achieve truly sustainable development around the world if we don’t end hunger and malnutrition . As much as poverty causes hunger , hunger is also a key cause — and maintainer — of poverty .

If a person doesn’t get enough food, they’ll lack the strength and energy needed to work. Or their immune system will weaken from malnutrition and leave them more susceptible to illness that prevents them from getting to work. This can lead to a vicious cycle, especially for children. If a mother is malnourished during pregnancy, that can be passed on to her children. The costs of malnutrition may be felt over a lifetime: Adults who were stunted as children earn, on average, 22% less than those who weren’t stunted. In Ethiopia , stunting contributes to GDP losses as high as 16%.

Beyond that, however, we all want our families, friends, and loved ones to live long, creative, happy lives. Having enough food that provides the nutrients we need is a key ingredient.

Here’s how Concern is working to reach this goal across each of the five UN SDG targets.

Stand With Concern in Ending Global Hunger

By 2030, the goal is to end hunger and ensure that everyone (particularly those most vulnerable) has access to safe, nutritious, and sufficient food year-round. What’s key here is the issue of vulnerability. Many groups who are traditionally more susceptible to hazard and risk in an emergency — including women, infants, people living in extreme poverty, or in areas especially susceptible to the climate crisis — are those who struggle to meet their dietary requirements year-round.

Regardless of the roadblocks, however, the world still produces enough food to feed its entire population. Kenya’s Tana River County, for example, has borne the brunt of the country’s climate-related impacts over the last few decades, leading to rising hunger levels. In 2020, Concern worked with communities in this county on an integrated agriculture and livelihoods program called the LEAF Project , which took two approaches to a common challenge: Provide lifesaving treatment for acutely-malnourished children and pregnant/lactating women, and prevent future cases of malnutrition through sustainable livelihoods that allow people living in poverty and marginalization to generate long-term incomes.

In the end, food security levels among those communities participating in LEAF rose dramatically. So much so that, for the first time in three decades, there was no need for food aid distribution in the communities where LEAF was active.

There are a few different types of malnutrition , which in and of itself is a side effect of extreme hunger. Regardless of the specific diagnosis, each can have a lifetime of ramifications — especially for young children. Malnutrition in all its forms costs the global economy as much as $3.5 trillion USD, owing to human capital lost, premature mortality, increased healthcare costs, compromised school performance, and adult productivity.

In 2000, Concern was part of a revolution in the treatment of malnutrition in extreme low-income communities, particularly those where other factors like conflict and remote locations posed barriers to getting medical treatment. A combination of community-based health workers and treatment through portable, shelf-stable therapeutic food has helped to save millions of lives in the last two decades.

Increase agricultural productivity and resilience, and diversified crops and seeds

These last three targets go hand-in-hand in many of the countries where Concern works. The effects of climate change on agriculture have been devastating in many parts of the world, and many of the methods and crops that farmers have relied on for generations are no longer able to yield the same quality and quantity of food. Countries in the Horn of Africa and south of the Sahara have contended with decades of droughts which lead to lost harvests and livestock. Communities along the coastline of India and Bangladesh have had to contend with rising sea levels, which either wipe away plants or destroy crops due to increased salinity. Small farms, women, and indigenous peoples are especially at risk in this context.

Climate Smart Agriculture is one solution that helps farmers use the resources available to them in order to see more fruitful harvests, using techniques like soil preservation and crop rotation to improve the conditions for growth. Farmers like Esime Jenaia in Mangochi, Malawi , have been able to find more efficient methods of producing, processing, and even marketing their harvests, based on their land and climate. Our gender equality trainings in Malawi also help female farmers achieve the same results with their work as their male counterparts do, both in the field and at market. “With the same field, I used to harvest one bag of maize, but now I harvest eight bags,” Esime told us in 2019.

Sometimes, trying a new crop is also the key. As far as anyone can remember, barley was the norm in South Wollo, Ethiopia. However, the country’s highlands were not ideally suited to the plant, which isn’t drought-resistant. Potatoes were better suited to the land, and held a higher payoff — as Ali Assen discovered. Barley in South Wollo fetches 6,400 Ethiopian Birr ($220) for every 2.5 acres. The same area’s equivalent of potatoes can sell for up to 62,000 Ethiopian Birr ($2,150).

Fighting hunger in Ethiopia — the Irish way

Are we on track to achieve zero hunger by 2030 .

The sad answer is: No. Conflict and climate change were both major barriers to ending hunger before 2019, and while there was steady progress still being made, much of it has been reversed since the rapid spread of COVID-19 . In east Africa, a locust invasion that decimated crops coincided with pandemic-related shutdowns, creating a crisis as multifaceted as it is damaging. In low-income countries, small-scale food producers have been hit especially hard — and these farmers can make up as much as 85% of food producers in their region.

Beyond food production, stunting and wasting among children are also likely to worsen due to the events of the last two years. We still don’t know the full effects of the pandemic on child hunger, but one estimate suggests that the number of children suffering from malnutrition could increase by over 10 million between 2020 and 2022.

Zero Hunger: What can I do to help?

The US is a leader in moving the humanitarian system to be more anticipatory, responding early before a crisis takes hold. Addressing the current hunger crisis as well as the data-informed indicators we have around future hunger crises will be a clear test of that legacy. Here are some ways that you can take action and contribute to a solution:

• Eliminate food waste in your home. Food waste is one of the leading causes of hunger in the world, and one of the easiest steps you can take. Use that you purchase while it’s fresh, or freeze items to extend their shelf-lives.
• Shop local and sustainably. Supporting your local farmers and food systems helps to make your consumption more sustainable — and often the quality of food is much better.
• Let your representatives know that Zero Hunger is a priority. As a constituent, your voice matters to elected officials. Ask that your representatives continue to honor foreign aid commitments that the United States makes towards countries — many of which are earmarked for food aid and agricultural interventions that could help eliminate hunger levels in certain areas.
• Join the conversation. A number of culinary creators from around the world stand united with Concern Worldwide in the fight against global hunger with Chefs United, calling on individuals, corporations, and governments to guarantee humanitarian assistance for the 41 million people who stand at risk of famine.
• Vote with your wallet. Supporting organizations like Concern allows us to continue our proven, value-for-money work in ending malnutrition. A one-time, tax-deductible gift of $50 can provide a full course of therapeutic food to save a child’s life. A recurring, tax-deductible monthly gift of $120 can feed an entire family for the year.

Support Concern in Ending Hunger

RUTF and CMAM: The Story of a Humanitarian Revolution

Climate Smart Agriculture: Back to the basics to fight climate change and hunger

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Zero Hunger

End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture.

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SDG 2: Zero Hunger

SDG Goal 2: Zero Hunger (End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture

Goal 2 seeks sustainable solutions to end hunger in all its forms by 2030 and to achieve food security. The aim is to ensure that everyone everywhere has enough good-quality food to lead a healthy life. Achieving this Goal will require better access to food and the widespread promotion of sustainable agriculture. This entails improving the productivity and incomes of small-scale farmers by promoting equal access to land, technology and markets, sustainable food production systems, and resilient agricultural practices. It also requires increased investments through international cooperation to bolster the productive capacity of agriculture in developing countries. 

After decades of steady decline, the number of people who suffer from hunger – as measured by the prevalence of undernourishment – began to slowly increase again in 2015. Current estimates show that nearly 690 million people are hungry, or 8.9 percent of the world population – up by 10 million people in one year and by nearly 60 million in five years.

The world is not on track to achieve Zero Hunger by 2030. If recent trends continue, the number of people affected by hunger would surpass 840 million by 2030.

According to the World Food Programme, 135 million suffer from acute hunger largely due to man-made conflicts, climate change, and economic downturns. The COVID-19 pandemic could now double that number, putting an additional 130 million people at risk of suffering acute hunger by the end of 2020.

With more than a quarter of a billion people potentially at the brink of starvation, swift action needs to be taken to provide food and humanitarian relief to the most at-risk regions.

At the same time, a profound change of the global food and agriculture system is needed if we are to nourish the more than 690 million people who are hungry today – and the additional 2 billion people the world will have by 2050. Increasing agricultural productivity and sustainable food production is crucial to help alleviate the perils of hunger.

Goal 2 Targets

- By 2030, end hunger and ensure access by all people, in particular the poor and people in vulnerable situations, including infants, to safe, nutritious, and sufficient food all year round.

- By 2030, end all forms of malnutrition, including achieving, by 2025, the internationally agreed targets on stunting and wasting in children under 5 years of age, and address the nutritional needs of adolescent girls, pregnant and lactating women, and older persons.

- By 2030, double the agricultural productivity and incomes of small-scale food producers, in particular women, indigenous peoples, family farmers, pastoralists, and fishers, including through secure and equal access to land, other productive resources, and inputs, knowledge, financial services, markets and opportunities for value addition and non-farm employment.

- By 2030, ensure sustainable food production systems and implement resilient agricultural practices that increase productivity and production, that help maintain ecosystems, that strengthen capacity for adaptation to climate change, extreme weather, drought, flooding, and other disasters, and that progressively improve land and soil quality.

- By 2020, maintain the genetic diversity of seeds, cultivated plants, and farmed and domesticated animals and their related wild species, including through soundly managed and diversified seed and plant banks at the national, regional, and international levels, and promote access to and fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from the utilization of genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge, as internationally agreed.

- Increase in investment, including through enhanced international cooperation, in rural infrastructure, agricultural research and extension services, technology development, and plant and livestock gene banks in order to enhance agricultural productive capacity in developing countries, in particular, least developed countries.

- Correct and prevent trade restrictions and distortions in world agricultural markets, including through the parallel elimination of all forms of agricultural export subsidies and all export measures with equivalent effect, in accordance with the mandate of the Doha Development Round.

- Adopt measures to ensure the proper functioning of food commodity markets and their derivatives and facilitate timely access to market information, including on food reserves, in order to help limit extreme food price volatility.

- United Nations: https://bit.ly/3b8zfEI

- United Nations SDGs: https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/hunger/

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World Far From Reaching “Zero Hunger” by 2030, According to UN Report

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

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Tim Walz, Kamala Harris' pick for vice president, takes aim at DeSantis' policies. What he said

Vice President Kamala Harris has chosen her own v ice president in her campaign for president of the United States: Tim Walz, governor of Minnesota .

Florida's governor, Ron DeSantis, was not impressed . "Harris-Walz: most left-wing ticket in American history," he posted on X, formerly Twitter , Tuesday. "Minnesota was ground zero for the BLM riots of 2020. Harris egged it on and Walz sat by and let Minneapolis burn."

But Walz , who has long been a champion for progressive values, hasn't been too impressed with DeSantis, either.

Walz slammed Florida in Minnesota State of the State address

Walz never mentioned DeSantis by name when delivering his State of the State speech before the Minnesota legislature last April, but he came close.

“I’ve seen some of these other governors on TV – they find a lot of time to be on TV – and they’re always talking about ‘freedom,’” he said . “But it turns out what they mean is that government should be free to invade your bedroom, your children’s locker room, and your doctor’s office."

DeSantis is a frequent guest on FOX and other conservative shows.

“Here in Minnesota, when we talk about freedom, we talk about having your children be free to go to school without worrying about being shot dead in their schools,” Walz said.

With the Democrats holding a margin in Congress, Minnesota has passed several progressive bills during Walz's terms such as abortion access, free school lunches and breakfasts for all students, LGBTQ+ rights, environmental issues and rental assistance.

“Look, I’m only the governor of this great state. It’s not up to me how folks in places like Florida go about their business. But I have to tell you, I’m pretty glad we do it our way and not their way,” Walz said, to applause. “They’re banishing books from their schools. We’re banishing hunger from ours.”

Walz criticized Florida's book bans

Walz, a former teacher from a family of teachers, has slammed Florida multiple times over its dramatic increase in book challenges and bans over the last few years.

"Ridiculous," he posted on X last September. "While we're focused on banishing hunger with free breakfast and lunch, they're focused on banning books, bullying LGBTQ+ students, and attacking teachers."

Ridiculous. While we're focused on banishing hunger with free breakfast and lunch, they're focused on banning books, bullying LGBTQ+ students, and attacking teachers. https://t.co/PtSX7UbyPx — Governor Tim Walz (@GovTimWalz) September 20, 2023

Earlier that year, in response to a story about Shakespeare possibly being a violation of Florida anti-drag laws, he posted , "They banned Shakespeare… what’s next?"

Walz supports transgender rights

More and more GOP-led states — particularly Florida under DeSantis — have sought to limit gender-affirming care, prevent social transitioning or discussion of gender in schools and block trans people from using bathrooms in public buildings and schools that do not align to their sex assigned at birth.

In 2023, Walz signed an executive order protecting such health care and bills that blocked conversion therapy and established Minnesota as a sanctuary state for people traveling or moving to the state for gender-affirming care.

I just signed three bills into law that:   ✔️Protect people seeking or providing abortions in Minnesota ✔️Ban the harmful practice of conversion “therapy” ✔️Protect access to gender-affirming health care   In Minnesota, we’re protecting rights – not taking them away. — Governor Tim Walz (@GovTimWalz) April 27, 2023

"In Minnesota, we're protecting rights not taking them away," he said .

Walz invited people seeking freedom to move to Minnesota

After Florida's College Board effectively banned the AP Psychologist course from schools, Walz weighed in on social media . "My message stays the same: If you want to live in the year 2023, come to Minnesota. We’re protecting freedoms here – not taking them away."

Last month he told a group of Washington reporters that DeSantis' brag of the number of new residents coming in from around the country can work against him.

“Like no time in my lifetime, the choice in states you could pick could not be greater,” he said. “Folks don’t really care about the woke corporation fights, they care about the roads and water treatment plants.”

Editor's note: Updated with more information