World Hunger and PoliticsWorld Hunger and Politics

Per Pinstrup-AndersenPer Pinstrup-Andersen

Prepared for:Prepared for:BioNB321BioNB321

The State of the PlanetThe State of the PlanetCornell UniversityCornell UniversityFebruary 6, 2008February 6, 2008

Why do you think poverty and hunger are widespread in

developing countries?A. Because poor people are lazy

B. Because they have too many children

C. Because their governments do not care enough

D. Because rich countries exploit poor countries

E. None of the above

Hunger and the Planet What does hunger have to do with the planet? A hungry planet is not a sustainable planet Hungry people are poor They depend on natural resources They cause environmental degradation Their livelihood is threatened Poverty eradication and sustainable

management of the planet must go hand-in-hand

How many preschool children die of diseases related to hunger and poor nutrition during a 75-minute

class period?

A. 6

B. 75

C. 400

D. 750

E. Don’t know

In the next 75 minutes 1400 children will die

750 due to hunger and malnutrition

That is 5-6 million per year

It is preventable!

Every fourth child in developing countries is malnourished

Almost 3 times the U.S. population is hungry

The Triple Burden of Hunger The Triple Burden of Hunger and Malnutrition:and Malnutrition:1.1. Energy and protein deficiencies: Energy and protein deficiencies:

HungerHunger

2.2. Specific nutrient deficiencies: Specific nutrient deficiencies: Hidden HungerHidden Hunger

3.3. Excessive net energy intake: Excessive net energy intake: Overweight & ObesityOverweight & Obesity

The World Food Summit Goal

To reduce by half the number of people suffering from hunger

Global Progress Towards Meeting the WFS Goal

824 797 815815 794

0

200

400

600

800

1000

1990-92

1995-97

2000-02

2015

Mill

ion

ActualWFS GoalExtrapolated

382 Million382 Million

412

Which continent has the largest number of people suffering from hunger?

A. Africa

B. Asia

C. Latin America

D. Don’t know

Where Are the Hungry?NENA, 39

LAC53

Sub-Saharan Africa

204

India 221

Other Asia & Pacific

156

China142

Source: FAO 2004

NENA

39Million

Where Are the Underweight Children?

Source: UNICEF 2006

Total 146 Million

Chi

na, 7

Pak

ista

n, 8

India57

Ban

glad

esh

, 8

Nig

eria

, 6

Rest 48

Indonesia, 6

Ethio

pia,

6

Where Are the Low-Birth Weight Babies Born?

Source: UNICEF 2006

Total 20.3 Million

CCE/CIS 0.4

LAC1.1

SSA 4.0

South Asia 11.4

Asia 2.0

WANA1.4

Rural and Urban Hunger in Developing Rural and Urban Hunger in Developing CountriesCountries

Rural70.0%

Urban30.0%

1. Access to assets

Education, health, nutrition Land Water Knowledge Credit and savings Employment

2. Access to technology

3. Access to markets

4. Appropriate institutions

The Rural Poor Need:The Rural Poor Need:

Poor families spendPoor families spendup to 50-70%up to 50-70%

of income on foodof income on food

Why is agriculture important?

Most hungry people are in rural areas

The food comes from there

Farmers are stewards of natural resources

Policy Priorities Investment in public goods for agriculture

Science and technologyMarkets Infrastructure and institutions

Investment in human resourcesHealth careEducation

Removal of trade distorting subsidies Integrated natural resource management

RhetoricDeclarationsPlansTargets

Action

Freedom from Hunger as a Freedom from Hunger as a Human RightHuman Right

The UN DeclarationThe UN Declaration

A right or a privilege?A right or a privilege?

No enforcement, no penaltyNo enforcement, no penalty

Other Rights: EnforcementOther Rights: Enforcement Property rightsProperty rights Animal rightsAnimal rights International tradeInternational trade

Legally enforceable rulesLegally enforceable rules International institutionsInternational institutions

WTO vs. UNICEF, ILO, and FAOWTO vs. UNICEF, ILO, and FAO

Action vs. Failure to Action vs. Failure to Take ActionTake Action

Killing vs. letting dieKilling vs. letting die

Genocide?Genocide?

Crime against humanity?Crime against humanity?

Why We Should CareWhy We Should Care Ethics

Economics

Stability

Environment

Future of our planet

In the global village, someone else’s poverty very soon becomes one’s own problem: of lack of markets for one’s products, illegal immigration, pollution, contagious disease, insecurity, fanaticism, terrorism.

UN 2001

““Today’s real borders Today’s real borders are not between are not between nations, but between nations, but between the powerful and the the powerful and the powerless”powerless”

Kofi AnnanKofi Annan

Why do you think poverty and hunger are widespread in

developing countries?

A. Because poor people are lazy

B. Because they have too many children

C. Because their governments do not care enough

D. Because rich countries exploit poor countries

E. None of the above