12.10.2020 | Press Release

Welthungerhilfe Presents the 2020 Global Hunger Index

Coronavirus, war, and climate change: The world is not on track to end hunger by 2030.

Eine Frau mit Mundschutz und einem Tuch um den Kopf sitzt auf dem Boden, neben sich stehen Schüsseln mit Gemüse. — A greengrocer is waiting for customers on the shore of Lake Dal in Srinangar, Kashmir, in July 2020. © Tauseef Mustafa/AFP

Simone Pott Team Communications

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Bonn/Berlin, 12 October 2020. Even before the COVID-19 pandemic hit, hunger and undernutrition were plaguing people in more than 50 countries. Due to inequality, conflict, displacement, and climate change, progress in the global fight against hunger has been too slow to achieve the legally binding goal of Zero Hunger by 2030.

This state of affairs is clearly reflected in the latest edition of the Global Hunger Index, which assesses the nutrition situation in 107 countries. Since 2012, hunger rates have increased in 14 countries, including Kenya, Madagascar, Venezuela, and Mozambique. As Welthungerhilfe points out, the COVID-19 pandemic and its economic effects are exacerbating this trend, causing additional food insecurity for millions of people. The number of people going hungry has now risen to 690 million worldwide. Against this background, Welthungerhilfe is pleased to see the Nobel Peace Prize being awarded to the World Food Programme, as this acknowledges the key challenge that global hunger poses to the international community.

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“Even before the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, hunger rates were alarming, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. People were already suffering from a multitude of crises caused by wars, droughts, flooding, and locusts plagues. Now, COVID-19 is throwing fuel on the fire, with all projections foreseeing a sharp increase in hunger and poverty. This situation is being further compounded by climate change.

To prevent hunger and poverty from growing even worse, social security systems must be expanded in the affected countries, and we need to make our food systems fairer and more resilient. At the present rate of progress in the fight against hunger, 37 countries will not be able to achieve a low level of hunger by 2030. Awarding the Nobel Peace Prize to the World Food Programme bolsters the fight to end hunger and to give a voice to the people it affects”, underlines Marlehn Thieme, president of Welthungerhilfe.

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A woman wearing a face mask carries her little daughter on her back.

A girl washes her hands and looks at the camera

A young woman and two children in a makeshift tent, surrounded by water.

Junge Mutter mit Baby in einem Flüchtlingscamp in Bentiu, Südsudan.

Frauen stehen und sitzen mit Tellern und Töpfen in der Hand.

Ein Mädchen bedeckt ihren Mund und Nase mit einem Tuch. Sie hält einen Teller mit Essen in der Hand.

Eine Frau steht mit einem Kind auf dem Arm und Mundschutz in einer Menschenschlange.

Eine Frau sitzt auf dem Boden und zählt Geld.

Eine Frau mit einem violetten Tuch um Kopf und Schultern pflückt Salat und lächelt dabei in die Kamera.

Food distribution in times of coronavirus: 22-year-old Madeline Shimuli from Kenya, together with her two-year-old daughter, collects food from a contactless Welthungerhilfe distribution in the St. Charles Lwanga Centre in Kibera, Nairobi. © Natalia Jidovanu/Welthungerhilfe

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Two-year-old Cherica practices proper hand washing in front of her grandmother’s home in Cité Soleil, a marginalised commune of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, as part of preventive measures against COVID-19. Access to water, sanitation, and hygiene services is crucial for protecting children and adults from infections. © Dieu Nalio Chery/Concern Worldwide

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Flooding in a refugee camp in South Sudan: A young woman, her little brother and her little sister are looking out of a makeshift tent, surrounded by water. © Welthungerhilfe

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Winter is hard in the refugee camps in Azaz in Northern Syria. © Welthungerhilfe

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In a refugee camp for internally displaced persons in Bentiu, Southern Sudan, a young mother separates the wheat from the chaff, with her baby next to her on a mat (2014). © Roland Brockmann/ Welthungerhilfe

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Following a workshop on new methods of vegetable cultivation in the province of North Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo, the participants cook and eat together. With improved cultivation methods, the small farmers can increase their income and improve their access to a more balanced and varied diet. © Kai Löffelbein/Welthungerhilfe

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Food distribution in a slum near Delhi, India. Many of the current residents are stranded migrant workers who were caught off guard by the Corona pandemic and the nationwide lockdown. The food consists mostly of rice, vegetables and lentils. © Florian Lang/Welthungerhilfe

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A woman with her child is waiting while a local NGO in Delhi, India, distributes food to migrant workers. Because of the measures taken to contain the Covid 19 pandemic, thousands of them have lost their livelihoods and are dependent on food aid. In India, as elsewhere, the pandemic threatens to exacerbate an already serious hunger situation. © Florian Lang/Welthungerhilfe

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A member of a women's savings group in Kalimati Kalche, Nepal, pays out a loan to another member. The proportion of female workers in Nepalese agriculture is increasing. Better access to credit and increasing decision-making powers are therefore essential for empowering women and promoting the agricultural sector. © Just Films/Welthungerhilfe

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Sori Gollo grows a variety of fruits and vegetables in her vegetable garden in Kalacha, Marsabit County, Kenya. In drought-stricken northern Kenya, kitchen gardens can help improve household food security and offer people in remote rural areas alternative livelihoods. © Jennifer Nolan/Concern Worldwide

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Usage note:Please note that the pictures may only be used in a Welthungerhilfe context and may not be passed on to third parties. Images must bear the credit copyright "Photographer/Welthungerhilfe". No long-term archiving. Please delete pictures after use!

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Global Hunger Index 2020: The countries analysed can be sorted into categories depending on whether the hunger situation is alarming, serious, moderate or low. © Welthungerhilfe

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Global Hunger Index 2020: Sierra Leone and Ethiopia are leadering the fight against hunger. Madagascar and Venezuela are at the bottom of the list. © Welthungerhilfe

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Welthungerhilfe is one of the largest private aid organisations in Germany; politically independent and non-denominational. It is fighting for “Zero Hunger by 2030”. Since it was founded in 1962, more than 9,830 overseas projects in 70 countries have been supported with 3.95 billion euros. Welthungerhilfe works on the principle of empowering people to help themselves: from rapid disaster relief to reconstruction and long-term development cooperation projects with national and international partner organisations.

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