Around 733 million people experienced Hunger in 2023, marking three consecutive years of persistently high global hunger levels, according to the latest State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World (SOFI) report released today by five United Nations agencies.
Published amidst the G20 Global Alliance against Hunger and Poverty Task Force Ministerial Meeting in Brazil, the report underscores that global efforts to achieve Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 2, Zero Hunger by 2030, have regressed by 15 years, with undernourishment levels akin to those seen in 2008-2009.
While noting advancements in areas such as stunting and exclusive breastfeeding, the report highlights the persistence of food insecurity and malnutrition. It reveals a plateau in global hunger figures, with between 713 million to 757 million people undernourished in 2023—representing an increase of approximately 152 million compared to 2019.
Regional disparities are stark, with Hunger rising in Africa (20.4 percent), remaining stable in Asia (8.1 percent), and showing improvement in Latin America (6.2 percent) but increasing in Western Asia and the Caribbean. The report projects that by 2030, about 582 million people will suffer chronic undernourishment, half of whom will reside in Africa.
Beyond Hunger, the report underscores broader challenges: in 2023, over 2.33 billion people faced moderate or severe food insecurity globally, with more than 864 million experiencing severe food insecurity—figures that have persisted since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
The report also highlights economic barriers to healthy diets, affecting over one-third of the global population, particularly in low-income countries where 71.5 percent cannot afford a nutritious diet.
It notes an increase in this disparity in Africa despite improvements in other regions.
Addressing these issues requires comprehensive financial strategies, emphasized by the report’s theme “Financing to end hunger, food insecurity and all forms of malnutrition”.
The heads of the five UN agencies urge innovative financing solutions to bridge the growing gap, emphasizing the crucial need for coordinated global action to strengthen food security and nutrition frameworks.
FAO Director-General QU Dongyu, IFAD President Alvaro Lario, UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell, WFP Executive Director Cindy McCain, and WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus collectively call for enhanced investments in agrifood systems, increased access to financing for food security, and more concerted efforts to tackle the complex drivers of global malnutrition.
Their statements underscore the collective commitment to ending Hunger and malnutrition, stressing that such investments are essential for future prosperity and fundamental human rights obligations to ensure adequate food and nutrition for current and future generations.
