The UN University (UNU) has launched a report addressing the consequences of extreme natural events in 171 countries, and the connection between food security and disaster risk.
Upon the report's launch, Peter Mucke, Managing Director of the 'WorldRiskReport 2015,' said that crises and disasters cause hunger; the “catastrophic effects of natural hazards” can be decreased by ensuring that people are fed; and that hungry people are more vulnerable to disasters, wars and conflicts.
17 November 2015:
The UN University (UNU) has launched a report addressing the consequences of extreme natural events in 171 countries, and the connection between food security and disaster risk. Upon the report’s launch, Peter Mucke, Managing Director of the WorldRiskReport 2015, said crises and disasters cause hunger, the “catastrophic effects of natural hazards” can be decreased by ensuring that people are fed, and hungry people are more vulnerable to disasters, wars and conflicts.
Mucke also underscored that the internationally agreed objective of zero hunger by 2030 can be achieved, but that unequal distribution of agricultural products along with food waste and losses have contributed to the current hunger situation.
The report explains that 2.5 billion people depend directly on agriculture for their survival, and if their harvests, livestock or means of transportation are negatively affected by a natural hazard, their livelihoods are at risk. Additionally, limited resources hamper people’s ability to respond effectively to a natural disaster. An investment in food security, the report explains, reduces the vulnerability of societies to natural hazards and conversely, an investment in disaster risk reduction (DRR) positively impacts on food security.
The report also contains a ‘WorldRiskIndex,’ which evaluates the exposure to natural hazards faced by 171 countries and assesses the vulnerability these countries must deal with when faced with such hazards. According to the index, Vanuatu faced the highest risk in 2015, with Tonga and the Philippines ranking second and third, respectively.
The report also includes chapters on, inter alia: food insecurity and risk assessment, and subsections on: how disasters and crises affect food security; how food insecurity influences disaster risk; food security in disaster and crisis situations; and the “field of tension” between food security and disaster risk.
The report concludes that the international community must invest in countries’ food security to reduce vulnerability to disasters, and provides recommendations regarding policies to make food security more resistant to crises and to ensure it is central to disaster prevention. The Alliance Development Works and UNU’s Institute for Environment and Human Security wrote the report. [Publication: WorldRiskReport 2015] [UNU Press Release]