Global Hunger Index
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Global Hunger Index is a tool which is used for measuring and tracking hunger at global, regional and national levels. GHI allows us to compare levels of hunger between countries and regions. Immediate help should be provided to the areas of the world where hunger levels are the highest.
It is calculated based on a formula which combines ‘four indicators’.
Undernourishment: It helps us in measuring inadequate food access, which is an important indicator of hunger. It covers the entire population, including children and adults.
‘Undernourishment’ is used as the lead indicator for international hunger targets, including Sustainable Development Goal 2 (Zero Hunger).
Child stunting & Child wasting: It goes beyond calorie availability and takes into consideration aspects of diet quality and utilization. The ‘indicators’ reflect on children’s vulnerability to nutritional deficiencies. Being sensitive to uneven food distribution, they are used as nutrition indicators for SDG 2 (Zero Hunger).
Child mortality: Acute hunger can lead to death and children are the most vulnerable.
The ‘indicator’ contributes to GHIs ability to take stock of deficiencies of essential vitamins and minerals. On the other hand, stunting and wasting only help us partially to capture the mortality risk of undernutrition.
Where does the data come from?
The data used for calculating GHI scores come from the UN and other multilateral agencies including Unicef, World Bank, and Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). The GHI scores are the reflection of the latest revised data available for the four ‘indicators’.
Global Hunger Index 2022 (India)
As per the Global Hunger Index 2022, India’s position dropped to 107th position out of the 123 countries. It was at 101th position the previous year. In the year 2020, India was ranked 94th among 107 nations.
The score of 29.1 indicates that India has some serious ‘hunger’ issues which needs to be addressed immediately.
India’s child wasting rate of 19.3 percent is the highest of any country in the world, ‘thanks’ to its large population. Child wasting helps us predict mortality among children under five years of age. It has worsened over the years, from 15.1 percent in 2012-16 to 19.3 percent in 2017-21.
Countries like India, Pakistan and Afghanistan have child stunting rates somewhere between 35 and 38 percent. Afghanistan’s rate is the highest among these regions.
Approximately 224.3 million people in India are undernourished.
India is ranked lower than neighboring countries like Sri Lanka, Nepal, Pakistan, and Bangladesh on GHI 2022. Srilanka is currently facing its worst economic crisis in 70 years. There is an acute shortage of food, medicine, cooking gas and other essential items in the island nation. Sri Lanka is ranked 64th on GHI 2022. Meanwhile Pakistan ranks at 99th, Nepal at 81st and Bangladesh at 84th.
The South Asian region has the highest hunger level in the world. It also has the highest child stunting rate and child wasting rate in the world.
Countries with a score of less than 5 have been collectively ranked between 1 and 17 in the GHI 2022. The top 6 countries are Belarus, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Chile, China, Croatia and Estonia respectively.
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Check your knowledge
Answer) Global Hunger Index.
Answer) 107th.
Answer) Undernourishment, child stunting, child wasting, and child mortality.