Context
India has slipped to 101st position in the Global Hunger Index (GHI) 2021 of 116 countries, from its 2020 position of 94th.
About the Global Hunger Index
- Annual Report: Published jointly by European NGOs of Concern Worldwide and Welthungerhilfe.
- It began production in 2006. It is published every October.
- The 2021 edition marks the 16th edition of the GHI.
- Purpose: To fully measure and track poverty at the global, regional, and national levels.
- Calculation: Calculated on the basis of four indicators:
- Undernourishment: Share of the population with insufficient caloric intake.
- Child wasting: Share of children under age five who have low weight for their height, reflecting acute undernutrition.
- Child stunting: The proportion of children under the age of five with low birth weight, indicating chronic malnutrition.
- Child Mortality: Child mortality rate under five years of age.
- Scoring: Based on the values of the four indicators, GHI determines hunger by a score of 100 points where 0 is the best score (no hunger) and 100 is the worst.
- The GHI score for each country is sharply divided, from the lowest to the most alarming.
- Data Collection: Information on malnutrition is provided by the Food and Agriculture Organization and details of child mortality are available from the UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (UN IGME).
- Child wasting and stunting data are drawn from the joint database of UNICEF, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the World Bank, among others.
Indian scenario
- Since 2000, India has made substantial progress, but there are still areas of concern, particularly regarding child nutrition.
- India's GHI score dropped from 2000 GHI with 38.8 points - considered a shock - to 2021 GHI 27.5 points - considered serious.
- Although infant mortality has seen a dramatic decline - from 54.2% in 1998-1999 to 34.7% in 2016-2018 - it is still considered the highest.
- At 17.3%, India has the highest rate of child wasting in all GHI countries. This rate is slightly higher than during 1998-1999, when it was 17.1%.
- According to the Index, only 15 countries are worse off than India.
- India was also behind many neighboring countries. Pakistan ranked 92nd, Nepal and Bangladesh 76 and Sri Lanka ranked 65th.
Related Initiatives by India
- Eat Right India Movement
- POSHAN Abhiyan
- Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana Food Fortification
- National Food Security Act, 2013
- Mission Indradhanush
- Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) Scheme
