For the third year in a row.. “FAO”: Global hunger levels are declining

A report by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) revealed that global hunger levels have declined for the third year in a row, in an indicator that the United Nations described as “historic progress,” but it warned that this improvement is still fragile in the face of conflicts, climate change, and economic shocks.

This came during a press conference held by the FAO, at its headquarters in the Italian capital, Rome, to launch the report “The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World” (Sofi 2026), with the participation of officials from the United Nations agencies concerned with food security, who called for accelerating efforts to maintain this progress.

The head of the FAO, Qu Dongyu, stated during the conference that about 645 million people suffer from hunger, or 7.8%, which is the lowest percentage recorded so far, and shows that hunger is not inevitable, warning that wars in the Middle East and climate changes have a clear impact on these numbers.

A report by the organization noted that the situation of the African continent is the most dangerous, at a time when about 20% of its population suffers from chronic malnutrition, but climate shocks are not the only ones that cast a shadow on the African continent despite the severity of their impact, as conflicts in Sudan, the Sahel region, and the Democratic Congo deprive millions of people of access to their agricultural lands or sources of income, according to the report.

In addition to hunger, about 2.1 billion people, or 25.8% of the world’s population, suffer from moderate or severe food insecurity, according to the report, which indicated that food may be available in quantity, but it is irregular or lacks sufficient nutritional value.

As a result of malnutrition, about 150 million children under the age of five suffer from stunting, compared to 180 million in 2012.

The FAO report pointed out that the obesity rate among adults continues to rise, reaching 16.2% in 2024, and is expected to reach 18.6% by 2030.