A world with no hunger is a world we have been working towards for a very long time now. To understand the situation in its entirety, the grass-root level must be examined first. What is hunger? Hunger is the feeling of weakness and uneasiness caused due to the lack of food. Such a situation may occur due to several reasons like job instability, shortage of food, wastage, instability in markets, and poverty.
Poverty, prices, and hunger are inextricably interlinked. Millions of people worldwide suffer from hunger-related diseases simply because they cannot afford to buy an adequate amount of nutritious food for themselves and their families. One of the other major aspects is wastage by those who do have access. It has been established that there is enough food produced in the world to feed everyone on the planet yet it is not used judiciously and is wasted relentlessly.
Constantly worrying about where your next meal will come from causes physical and mental health concerns. Physically, hunger causes malnutrition, stunted growth, and premature birth while extreme hunger can lead to death and child mortality. Anxiety, change in behavioural patterns, violence, PTSD, and depression all go hand in hand with hunger.
While I, the person writing this article and you, the person reading it, are privileged to sleep with a stomach full of nutritious food tonight, the harsh truth lies in the fact that over 200 million people in just India and 690 million people worldwide will sleep hungry tonight. Now let’s pose a question to ourselves, was leaving that bit of food on our plate really worth it? Knowing that 10 million people worldwide will die due to chronic hunger and hunger-related diseases each year really throws light on the disparities in our society. This is precisely why a goal of obtaining a community where hunger will cease to exist is vital today. It points towards a world where we can prevent food wastage and tackle food security challenges ensuring access to nutritious food to all individuals across the world.
The United Nations sustainable development goal two, calls for a world with no hunger and goes hand in hand with all the other sixteen SDGs. Achieving a zero hunger global community will also help us attain many other goals. For instance, without the provision of healthy food, education and good healthcare also cannot be achieved.
Reaching a world with no hunger would impact society economically as it would lead to an increase in productivity and earning, socially as it would reduce the risk of conflicts, political unrest and help reduce violence paving the way for better equality. Zero hunger would also have several health benefits like reduction in the mortality rate and improvement in the treatment of TB, HIV, and overall better development. Lastly, education too would benefit as the outcomes would be better with an increased school enrolment rate, better attention span, and academic achievements.
If a food crisis is not controlled on time it may result in a famine, leading to a situation where there is large-scale malnutrition, starvation and death. Hunger causes over two deaths for every 10,000 people each day and over 30% of children in India suffer from acute malnutrition.
Such situations can be prevented if the management is carried out sustainably.
So far, the number of undernourished people has dropped by nearly half, merely in the past two decades due to the increase in agricultural produce and rapid economic growth. Many developing nations who once suffered from famines and hunger are now able to allow their population to meet their nutritional needs.
Although achieving a world community with no hunger seems distant, it is not impossible if we take action today. The solution to combating hunger is simple, provide food to those in need when they need it most.
The UN, national governments and several NGOs are working relentlessly to achieve this. As the youth, it is our moral obligation to defeat hunger by ensuring equality and giving priority to everyone.
We must educate people around us to reduce wastage and make nutrition a priority. Education is the prime weapon to fight against hunger because it not only increases awareness but also gives better opportunities and more access to food and income.
What we need to ensure today is that everyone has access to food in the right quantity and quality. Distributing food to the poorer sections of society in our neighbourhood is the least one can do.
Most of all, it is essential that we as the youth of this nation take action and raise our voice so that hunger, as an uprising concern in our society, is given the attention and priority it requires.
Your voice matters, act now!
Some ways to help you do your bit:
Donate :
https://foodfirst.org/get-involved/support-ff/become-a-member/ https://www.riseagainsthunger.org/take-action/ https://www.actionagainsthunger.org/donate/save-lives-end-hunger
Volunteer :
https://foodfirst.org/get-involved/events/ https://www.riseagainsthunger.org/take-action/host-a-meal-packaging-event/ https://www.actionagainsthunger.org/fundraise-against-hunger
Sign Petitions :
https://thehungersite.greatergood.com/clicktogive/ths/petition/RighttoFood https://www.booked.net/1billionhungry.html https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/action/fight-hunger-and-climate-change/
Email us for more information :
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reachaadya@gmail.com
revamittal@yahoo.com
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Great article
Inspiring
Very nice