War conflicts and extreme weather events, caused by climate change, are intensifying the food crisis, as one in four children, according to a Unicef report, is facing hunger.
Globally, 27% of children under the age of 5 suffered from severe food poverty in 2022 according to the UN, as part of a major survey on the subject.
More than a third of the 181 million children affected live in south Asia, where two in five infants are below the food poverty line, with countries such as Afghanistan and India hit particularly hard.
In Gaza, Israel’s war against Hamas has contributed to a large increase in child hunger. An estimated 88% of children now live in severe food poverty, one of the highest rates ever recorded in the Palestinian territory, up from 13% in 2020.
While the report found that the proportion of children experiencing severe food poverty had shifted little in half of the 64 countries with data dating back to 2012, almost a fifth of countries surveyed a decade ago have seen their situation to worsen.
Some of the highest rates of food poverty occurred in sub-Saharan Africa, where rates of stunting, a severe form of malnutrition, in some western and central countries of the continent are projected to remain more than double the agreed 2030 target.
Food insecurity in these areas has been intensified by the increase in droughts and floods caused by climate change, with large tracts of arable land disappearing.
Citizens in poorer areas increasingly relied on cheaper highly processed food and drink, Unicef said.
Figures from the World Food Report (“Global Report on Food Crises (GRFC) 2024“) showed that consumption of processed foods doubled between 2010 and 2022 in lower-middle-income countries, while purchases of soft drinks also increased by 70% over this period.
While problems caused by processed foods mainly affect urban areas, acute food insecurity was more prevalent in rural communities.
