SDG 2 – Zero Hunger
Food and agriculture are at the heart of civilization. Yet, agriculture faces multiple challenges: a growing world population (expected to grow to 9 billion by 2050), soil quality degradation, climate change, food wastage, water scarcity and changing lifestyles leading to urbanization.
SDG 2 – No Hunger is like SDG 1 on the foundation level of basic human needs. SDG 2 is about eradicating hunger in all forms by 2030. The three key aspects of SDG include:
- Ending hunger in all its forms for all people
- Decreasing malnutrition & Ensuring food security for all long-term
- Sustainable agricultural methods for ensuring planetary well-being
According to the UN’s Hunger Report, hunger is the term used to define periods when populations are experiencing severe food insecurity—meaning that they go for entire days without eating due to lack of money, lack of access to food, or other resources.
SDG 2 is a very interconnected. It is linked closely with SDG 1 – Poverty, which inhibits people from having access to food, SDG 3 – good health and well-being as food is about malnutrition, where the food you have is not always good for us. This is an issue faced not only by developing countries but also by developed countries. This highlights that we are using resources incorrectly and providing either too much or too little food for specific populations, which is linked with SDG 10 – Reduced Inequalities.
Poverty is also linked with SDG 5 Gender Equality as 70% of the people that go hungry are females. Which is then linked to SDG 8 – Decent Work and economic Growth as if people are not earning much and do not have decent working conditions this can again inhibit them from getting nutritious food.
The other angle to no hunger is SDG 12 linked with responsible consumption and production so that we ensure we use land and land resources effectively and not deplete them to ensure continuity.
Key facts on hunger on this link.
Progress on SDG 2
The global pandemic has really amplified the issue of hunger. Worldwide, an additional 70-161 million people are likely to have experienced hunger because of the pandemic in 2020.
Additionally, the number of undernourished individuals has increased from 650 million in 2019 to 720-811 million in 2020.
What are the things we can do as businesses and individuals?
- Read the SDGs underlying targets, and the indicators that are relevant.
- Educate yourself on what hunger is, and who is hit hardest in your community and how you can help.
- Create opportunities for people to start earning a living and provide them with basic food.
- Offer decent working conditions, fair wages to people that you employ both as households and as businesses.
- Buy local and empower small farmers.
- Share knowledge, experience, and data to build more aware organizations and conscious consumers.
- Research authentic initiatives and NGO’s that are working on providing food to those in need and work with them either by providing funds or by volunteering.
On track to success?
According to the The 2021 edition of the State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World report (SOFI 2021), hunger will not be eradicated by 2030 without bold actions to address inequality in access to food, among other areas where progress must accelerate.
In 2030, the report says that around 660 million people could still face hunger due to the last impacts of the pandemic on global food security. This is 30 million more people than if the pandemic had not occurred.