The continent of Africa has been condemned for not being on track at meeting the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 2 which targets ending hunger and ensuring access by all people to safe, nutritious and sufficient food all year round and to end all forms of malnutrition.
A recent study shows that 282 million people on the continent, which is estimated to be one-fifth of the entire population, faced hunger in 2020. This figure is said to be 46 million higher than the one of 2019.
A study by Cost of Hunger in Africa (COHA) conducted in 21 countries, shows that African member states are losing the equivalent of between 2 and 16 per cent of their Gross Domestic Product (GDP) due to child under-nutrition.
In addition, the current security trends on the continent, are said to have significantly affected food security through loss of access to means of production and massive displacement of population.
The disruptions, the study indicated, created an additional burden of nutrition challenges, as member states have to find a way to cover the nutrition gaps and the decrease in agricultural production.
