Inequity

Hunger is fundamentally about power. People with power determine who eats and who goes hungry, who lives and who dies. When the world is unequal, access to nutritious food is not the same, and those marginalized within a community – such as women, displaced people and refugees, and those with disabilities – are more likely to face barriers to essential services, jobs, income, and resources. This inequality causes hunger, especially chronic hunger, which in turn deepens inequity.

The top drivers of hunger – conflict, climate change, and inequity – also hit women hardest. In many places, women eat least and last, despite the fact that 90% of the time, they are responsible for preparing and purchasing food for their families. Recent data revealed that 150 million more women than men were hungry in 2021, with the largest differences found in Latin America, Asia, and the Caribbean. At the same time, women are our most powerful allies in the fight against hunger.

More than 3 billion people in the world are unable to afford the average cost of an inexpensive healthy diet. In both wealthy and poor countries, having a low disposable income when nutritious food is costly can have serious impacts. Eating low quality foods can lead to malnutrition, micronutrient deficiencies, and other health problems. If rising food costs are not matched by job opportunities with rising income, more people are at risk of hunger.