Food security and poverty are under the spotlight this October

World Food Day, celebrated annually since 1945, was established in honour of the founding of the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations.

On this day, organisations and governments all over the world focus on the production, preservation and distribution of food to ensure food security.

World Food Day could not be more essential than now, as spikes in food insecurity are anticipated across Africa.

Regardless of Africa’s huge resource endowments (including a wide availability of arable land and a young, growing labour force), the continent’s agricultural production alone is insufficient to meet food security needs. This is due to distribution, access, and affordability challenges, largely prevalent across the continent.

October Calendar

October is an awareness month for food security which promotes action to end hunger and malnutrition in Africa. 

There are several awareness days that focus on these issues in the October month. Some days of awareness have already passed, and others are still coming up.

16 October – World Food Day

With the 2020 theme: “Grow, Nourish, Sustain. Together.”, a clear focus is taken on sustainable food security in comparison to previous once-off interventions.

17 October – International Day for the Eradication of Poverty

The theme for this United Nations Day is:  Acting together to achieve social and environmental justice for all. It aims to address the challenge of achieving social and environmental justice for all world citizens.

Recognising the multi-dimensionality of poverty indicates how social and environmental justice is inseparable. Social justice cannot be fully attained without aggressively rectifying environmental injustices at the same time.

30 October – Africa Day of Food and Nutrition Security

Governments of African states are currently doing their best to end hunger by 2025. This goal was declared during the famous meeting of the African Union Summit (AU Summit) on 30 June and 1 July in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Each year, the AU Summit chooses a theme and organises various events throughout the year. The theme highlights the most important and current hunger issues in Africa.

Events facilitate the strengthening of African countries’ engagements with the aim of securing the Food and Nutrition Agenda, while consolidating political commitments to end hunger.

Aiding Africa’s food insecurity

A promising solution to food security concerns in Africa are fortified processed foods, which could potentially make nutritious diets more affordable and convenient for those who find it challenging to meet nutrient needs.

Companies like Nestlé work towards delivering diversified diets to help individuals meet all necessary nutrients in healthy portions. 

Conclusion

Important dates and conferences held in October help create awareness of African food insecurity issues, while fortified processed foods prove a plausible solution to help rectify such challenges.