Hunger on rise, affects 11% of world population - UN

(ANSA) - Rome, September 15 - After steadily declining for over a decade, hunger is on the rise again, affecting 815 million people in 2016, or 11% of the global population, according to a United Nations report presented on Friday. The increase - 38 million more people than the previous year - is largely due to the proliferation of violent conflicts and climate-related shocks, The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2017 report said. The report was prepared by the UN's three Rome-based food agencies - the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the World Food Programme (WFP) - plus the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the World Health Organization (WHO).
    "Over the past decade, conflicts have risen dramatically in number and become more complex and intractable in nature," the heads of UN agencies said in their joint foreword to the report.
    "This has set off alarm bells we cannot afford to ignore: we will not end hunger and all forms of malnutrition by 2030 unless we address all the factors that undermine food security and nutrition. "Securing peaceful and inclusive societies is a necessary condition to that end".