Despite pledges by world leaders to halve the proportion of the world¿s population that is undernourished by 2015, the number of undernourished people in sub-Saharan Africa has increased from 170 million in the period of 1990-1992 to over 200 million in the period of 2001-2003. Since early 2007, food-related riots have occurred in 15 countries, incl. 7 in sub-Saharan Africa, leading both the U.N. and the World Food Program to express concern about the impact of chronic undernourishment, or food insecurity, on world peace and security. This report examined: factors that contribute to persistent food insecurity in sub-Saharan Africa; and the extent to which host governments and donors, incl. the U.S., are working toward halving hunger in the region by 2015. Illus.

Food Insecurity Persists in Sub-Saharan Africa despite Efforts to Halve Hunger by 2015

The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) is an independent agency that works for Congress. The GAO watches over Congress, and investigates how the federal government spends taxpayers dollars. The Comptroller General of the United States is the leader of the GAO, and is appointed to a 15-year term by the U.S. President. The GAO wants to support Congress, while at the same time doing right by the citizens of the United States. They audit, investigate, perform analyses, issue legal decisions and report anything that the government is doing. This is one of their reports.

Most contributions reflect an evolution of thinking during the 1990s.

In 1996, the United States and more than 180 world leaders pledged to halve the number of undernourished people globally by 2015 from the 1990 level. The global number has not decreased significantly -- remaining at about 850 million in 2001-2003 -- and the number in sub-Saharan Africa has increased from about 170 million in 1990-1992 to over 200 million in 2001-2003. On the basis of analyses of U.S. and international agency documents, structured panel discussions with experts and practitioners, and fieldwork in four African countries, the author was asked to examine (1) factors that contribute to persistent food insecurity in sub-Saharan Africa and (2) the extent to which host governments and donors, including the United States, are working toward halving hunger in the region by 2015.

New evidence this year corroborates the rise in world hunger observed in this report last year, sending a warning that more action is needed if we aspire to end world hunger and malnutrition in all its forms by 2030. Updated estimates show the number of people who suffer from hunger has been growing over the past three years, returning to prevailing levels from almost a decade ago. Although progress continues to be made in reducing child stunting, over 22 percent of children under five years of age are still affected. Other forms of malnutrition are also growing: adult obesity continues to increase in countries irrespective of their income levels, and many countries are coping with multiple forms of malnutrition at the same time – overweight and obesity, as well as anaemia in women, and child stunting and wasting.