3. 飢え
3. 飢え
The FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization) estimates, based on data from 2000-2002, show that 852 million people worldwide experience chronic hunger. By definition, chronic hunger is a profound, debilitating human experience, that affects the ability of individuals to work productively, think clearly, and resist disease. It also has devastating consequences for society: it drains economies, destabilizes governments, and reaches across international boundaries.The vast majority -- 815 million people -- are found in the developing world. Some 28 million are in Eastern Europe and the countries of the former Soviet Union. Nine million live in the world's richest countries.
In the developing world, the FAO's figures indicate, the overall number of undernourished people decreased by just 9 million since the early 1990s, a relatively small reduction. Progress made during the early part of that decade was offset by the fact that during its second half the number of chronically hungry in developing countries actually increased, at a rate of almost 4 million per year.
Encouragingly, The State of Food Insecurity in the World (SOFI) 2004 also shows that the most pronounced changes took place in sub-Saharan Africa. During the latter half of the 1990s the growth in numbers of undernourished people there slowed from 5 million a year to 1 million per year, while the proportion of undernourished in the region fell from 36%, where it had hovered since 1990-1992, to 33%.
Many of the countries that have achieved rapid progress in reducing hunger have something in common, FAO points out: significantly better than average rates of agricultural growth.
Several have also led the way in implementing a twin-track strategy to attack hunger -- strengthening social safety nets to put food on the tables of those who need it most on the one hand, while attacking the root causes of hunger with initiatives to stimulate food production, increase employability and reduce poverty on the other.
For instance, Brazil's Zero Hunger programme supplies its school lunch programmes and other food safety nets by buying from local small and medium-sized farms.
Causes of Chronic Hunger:
Chronic hunger has little to do with food shortages. Global supplies of food far outstrip demand. Chronic hunger affects more than 800 million people in the world and it is, in and of itself, a potentially deadly condition.
Far more people die from causes related to chronic hunger than to famine. Chronically hungry people are exceptionally vulnerable when famine strikes. They have fewer resources to protect themselves and their families and are already living on the margin of survival.
There are five facts that do contribute to most of the world's hunger:
- Poverty. Poor people do not have the resources -- whether land, tools or money--needed to grow or buy food on a consistent basis.
- Armed Conflict. War disrupts agricultural production, and governments often spend more on arms than on social programs.
- Environmental Overload. Over-consumption by wealthy nations and rapid population growth in poor nations strain natural resources and make it harder for poor people to feed themselves.
- Discrimination. Lack of access to education, credit and employment is often the result of racial, gender or ethnic discrimination.
- Lack of Clout. Hunger at last is caused by powerlessness. People who don't have power to protect their own interests are hungry. The burden of this condition falls most acutely on children, women and elderly people.
Actions implemented encompass different types of programs:
- Nutrition Programs
Saving the life of a severely malnourished child can be a matter of hours. NGO set up therapeutic feeding centers to treat malnourished children. They also help control and prevent malnutrition through child-growth monitoring, nutritional surveys, and public education. Therapeutic feeding centers, at the heart of their emergency programs, save children from dying of acute severe malnutrition through rigorous programs of medical treatment. Re-nutrition products and protocols defined by the nutrition department are the basis of our interventions in emergency situations.
- Water and Sanitation Programs
Water is the leading weapon against hunger. Access to safe drinking water and better sanitation allows improvement in the state of health of communities and prevent the spread of diseases. Providing access to safe drinking water by drilling wells, tapping springs, and installing water systems is very important. They train local teams and whole communities to maintain equipment and work with the population on the importance of clean water and sanitation.
- Food Security Programs
To protect food security in the long term, it is essential to support local agriculture and economies by ensuring access to new resources. They distribute seeds and tools as well as conduct training programs in income-generating activities such as farming, gardening, animal breeding, and food conservation. Food security programs put people on the road to self-sufficiency.
To respond to crises food often must be distributed for immediate survival needs. The choice and quality of foods (which must take cultural factors into account) and identification of the neediest beneficiaries are key elements for defining the appropriate type of aid. In post-crisis situations or in order to prevent a recurrence, it is essential to support local agriculture and broaden a population's economic options by supplying inputs (seeds, fertilizers, tools, etc.), new techniques, and strengthening community resilience to future crises.
- Health Programs
A vicious circle exists between disease and malnutrition. A malnourished child is more vulnerable to diseases than a well-fed child. A sick child, weakened by illness, often becomes a victim of malnutrition. It is therefore necessary to address disease in order to eliminate hunger. NGO sets up mother and child health centers to provide immunization and pre/post-natal care. Their public health programs train medical staff, provide medicine, monitor and control epidemics, and rehabilitate clinics.
- Advocacy Programs
Raising awareness about hunger and seeks to alert the international community when human rights, especially the right to food, are violated. Our advocacy and public awareness efforts aim to effect institutional and cultural change to help create a world without hunger.
A lot of NGOs are working in this field: Action Against Hunger, the Red Cross, the CCFD (Comité Catholique contre la faim) or in Japan Hunger Free World.
