Nigeria, Ghana, 61 other countries experiencing food poverty – UNICEF

The global body’s most recent report for June 2024 also included: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, China, Côte d’Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Myanmar, Niger, Pakistan, the Philippines, Somalia, South Africa, Uganda, the United Republic of Tanzania, and Yemen.

Others were Tunisia, Nepal, Vietnam, Brazil, the Dominican Republic, Montenegro, Albania, Tonga, Indonesia, Gambia, Haiti, Burkina Faso, and Rwanda, among others.

“Across the world, millions of parents and families are struggling to provide nutritious and diverse foods that young children need to reach their full potential,” the report read.

“Growing inequities, conflict, and climate crises, combined with rising food prices, the overabundance of unhealthy foods, harmful food marketing strategies, and poor child feeding practices, are condemning millions of children to child food poverty.”

According to the research, one in every four children (27%) experiences severe child food poverty in early childhood, accounting for 181 million children under the age of five.

The body defined child food poverty as children’s inability to access and consume a nutritious and diverse diet during their early life.

It stated that children living in severe child food poverty are missing out on numerous nutrient-rich foods, while unhealthy foods are becoming entrenched in their diets, and that severe child food poverty is causing child malnutrition.

UNICEF, concerned about child hunger, urged governments and partners to invest in initiatives to promote children’s access to diversified and nutritious diets and eliminate severe child food poverty.

“Elevate child food poverty reduction as a requirement for achieving global and national nutrition and development goals and a metric of success in meeting children’s right to food and nutrition; and commit resources to end child food poverty,” it stated