Global Hunger Index 2020

The Global Hunger Index (GHI) is a tool for measuring hunger at global, regional, and national levels. GHI scores are based on the values of four component indicators:

undernourishment
child wasting
child stunting
child mortality

Based on the values of the four indicators, the GHI determines hunger on a 100-point scale where 0 is the best possible score (no hunger) and 100 is the worst. Each country’s GHI score is classified by severity, from low to extremely alarming
GHI is a joint project of Welthungerhilfe and Concern Worldwide. The GHI is calculated annually, and its results appear in a report issued in October each year

Key Findings

Worldwide hunger is at a moderate level.
Africa South of the Sahara and South Asia have the highest hunger and undernutrition levels among world regions
2020 GHI scores do not reflect the impact of Covid-19 on hunger and undernutrition.

Indian Scenario

India has a level of hunger that is “serious”( score of 27.2)
Indias GHI in 2020 & 2019

Year	2020	2019
Rank	94	102
Total Countries	107	117

India features behind Nepal (73), Pakistan (88), Bangladesh (75), Indonesia (70) among others Out of the total 107 countries, only 13 countries fare worse than India including countries like Rwanda (97), Nigeria (98), Afghanistan (99), Liberia (102), Mozambique (103), Chad (107) among others.

Why India ranked so low on GHI?

India was able to reduce under-five mortality rate drastically, but that alone is not sufficient to reduce the hunger problem in India. India’s child wasting has actually gone up over these years. High prevalence of Stunting and malnutrition among under-five children.
Though India have surplus food, most small and marginal holdings farmers are losing access to food. The reasons for hunger in India can be summarised as follows

The agriculture output from small and marginal holdings are either stagnant or declining.
The relative income of one section of people has been on the decline.
lack of income opportunities other than farm sector has contributed heavily to the growing joblessness in rural areas
poor implementation and accessibility of Public Distribution Systems.
The soiled approach in tackling malnutrition
Lack of safe drinking water, which results in acute malnutrition
Certain illnesses and infections, such as tuberculosis, measles, and diarrhea are directly linked to acute malnutrition
In 30 years, the number of natural disasters — droughts, cyclones, floods, etc. — linked to climate change has increased substantially. This results in decline in agricultural production either directly or indirectly