More Kenyans facing starvation, says report

At least 11 million people (26 per cent of the population) in Kenya were undernourished in the 2011-13 period, compared to 8.4 million (35 per cent) two decades ago, according to a report released yesterday.

Africa remains the region with the highest prevalence of undernourishment, with more than one in five people estimated to be chronically hungry. This means that at least 20 per cent of people in Africa are not getting enough food to lead active and healthy lives.

The report was jointly released yesterday by the United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), the International Fund for Agricultural Development (Ifad) and the World Food Programme (WFP).

The report established that Sub Saharan Africa has the largest level of undernourishment despite improvements over the past two decades. The prevalence of hunger has declined from 32.7 per cent to 24.8 per cent over the period under review.

The report, State of Food Insecurity in the World, says that at least 842 million people suffered from chronic hunger between 2011 and 2013 globally, with 223 million of them living in Sub Saharan Africa.

Malawi and Madagascar were recognised for reaching the millennium development goal (MDG 1) that targets the reduction of the undernourished by over half by the 2015 deadline. Malawi has been recognised for its strong and persistent commitment to boosting maize production, says the report.

In the report, the global leaders of FAO, Ifad and WFP called for nutrition-sensitive interventions in agriculture and food systems.

“Policies aimed at enhancing agricultural productivity and increasing food availability, especially when smallholders are targeted, can achieve hunger reduction even where poverty is widespread. When they are combined with social protection and other measures that increase the incomes of poor families, they can have an even more positive effect and spur rural development, by creating vibrant markets and employment opportunities, resulting in equitable economic growth,” wrote the agency heads in the report.

Last May, Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Felix Kosgey warned of a food shortage but reassured that the country’s food security was intact. He had said there was a shortfall of nearly 720,000 bags of maize in the strategic grain reserve, but that the stock would recover when maize is harvested.