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AZIZ NIYAZI. THE WORLD, CIS AND CENTRAL ASIA IN THE MEASUREMENTS OF HUNGER INDEX // The article was written for the bulletin "Russia and the Moslem World."
Keywords: Global Hunger Index, food security, Central Asia, CIS countries, UN.
Aziz Niyazi,
PhD(Hist.), Senior Research Associate,
The Centre for Central Asian, Caucasian and Volga-Urals Studies, Institute of Oriental Studies, RAS
Abstract: The article is devoted to the problem of hunger in the countries of Central Asia in comparison with the situation in other countries of the world. The author gives various statistical data and results of the study of the problem of hunger by international organizations. The analysis of the reasons leading to a problem of hunger among the population of the planet is given.
The next report of the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) "The Global Hunger Index of 2017: hunger and inequality"1 was published at the end of last year. Global Hunger Index reflects degree of chronic malnutrition in various regions and countries in the world, except for the most prosperous states with developed economy.2 The last study covers 119 countries. The index is calculated on the basis of four indicators: shares of starving population which is (chronically undernourished), shares of children under five years having low weight owing to acute malnutrition, shares of children under five years having development delays because of chronic malnutrition and also an indicator of children mortality under five years. The countries are ranged on 100-ball scale where 0 is the best result, 100 - the worst. The last results of a research are dated generally 2016, some 2012-2014, 2015 and the beginning of 2017.
In the report it is noted that in general in the world in 2017 in comparison with 2000 the level of hunger decreased by 27 percent. Improvement for this period happened by all four indicators of GHI. There were about 27 percent of malnourished by 2017, by contrast with 18,2 percent in 2000. The number of children with low weight decreased from 9,9 to 9,5 percent, with stunted growth from 37,7 to 27,8 percent. Child mortality declined from 8,2 to 4,7 percent.3
Nevertheless serious problems with food of inhabitants of the planet remain, in many countries they are far from the decision, and in some ones have seriously become aggravated. First of all it is connected with wars and conflicts, ecological disasters, social inequality, policy failure of authorities. Quite often such factors are closely bound, mutually aggravate each other. So in 2016 the number of starving inhabitants of Earth increased to 815 million people: it is more, than it was in 2015 (777 million) though it is less, than in 2000 (about 900 million). More than 100 million people faced the critical level of food insecurity though the previous year there were less of them - 80 million. The situation in the sphere of food security has considerably worsened in a number of the countries of Africa to the south from the Sahara, Southeast and Western Asia. And the most serious deterioration of the situation took place in the zones affected by wars, violent conflicts and internal fight where furthermore their impact was aggravated with droughts, floods and others ecological catastrophes. At the beginning of 2017 the UN stated that over 20 million people are on the brink of starvation in four countries of the world: Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan and Yemen. Flashes of hunger there reached extreme levels. Hunger was officially announced in a number of regions of South Sudan. At the same time deterioration of affairs in the area of food security was also noted in the countries with relative peace, first of all where recession of economy led to loss of currency returns and tax revenues that
negatively impacted as existence of import food, and increase in prices for it. The reduced prices of oil and mineral resources limited the potential of a number of governments in subsidizing of basic needs of citizens and support of poor households at the expense of programs of social protection. Both in peace and in military conditions access to food was narrowed first of all for poor social groups, villagers, refugees, women and girls.4
Apart from that, for the last ten years the number of conflicts in the countries in which severe forms of food insecurity were already observed has increased and where violence principally appears in rural areas that negatively affects production and availability of food. To the fullest extent a new flash of conflicts affected countries of Africa and the Middle East where, against the background of social and economic instability and low emergency response capacity, food crises burst. Often they have been caused by climatic shocks and as a result fight for water and land resources. Worst of all with food the situation is in the Central African Republic. In this state more than a half of the population starves - 50,9 percent of citizens, and improvements since 1992 there actually aren't observed years.
In general it is possible to characterize the situation in the Post-Soviet states as noncritical, except for Tajikistan. As is seen from the diagram almost all of them, achieved considerable progress in scaling back of malnutrition since 1992, also, as well as the countries of Eastern Europe.5
In Central Asia problems of hunger and malnutrition still demand serious efforts to solve them. The ratings of the countries of this region according to the Global Index of Hunger and also the ratings of other states for the comparative analysis are given below.
The ratings according to the calculations of the Global Index of Hunger from 119 countries of the world.6
Rating Country Years
1992 2000 2008 2017
Points
* Belarus - <5 <5 <5
* Cuba 10,5 5,3 <5 <5
* Ukraine - 13,7 <5 <5
21 Kazakhstan - 11,3 10,9 5,8
22 Russian Federation - 10,5 6,8 6,2
29 China 25,9 15,8 11,2 7,5
30 Iran 17,5 13,6 8,7 7,6
40 Republic of Kyrgyzstan - 19,7 13,4 9,3
52 Turkmenistan - 21,9 16,5 12,2
54 Uzbekistan - 23,8 16,1 13,1
96 Tajikistan - 41,8 32,6 28,7
100 India 46,2 38,2 35,6 31,4
107 Afghanistan 50,2 52,7 37,9 33,3
* - the countries are included into the leading group of 14 states united by the highest common rating. See the reference 6.
Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan got into the group of 2017 on-scale index under 10 points (43 countries) meaning a low level of hunger. The situation both with economy and food in Kazakhstan always remained at a higher level in comparison with other Central Asian republics. As a heritage from the Soviet Union the country got the most powerful industrial base and quite good agro-industrial resources of the region. Since the end of the 90th till 2017 Kazakhstan showed level decrease of chronic malnutrition almost twofold. Generally improvement of the situation with food was observed from 2008 to 2017. To a large extent it was connected with economic growth, agricultural and food policy of the authorities. According to the rating of the Global Hunger Index of 2017 it managed to outrun Russia and took 21st place. Russia came to the 22nd one though in 2000 according to the rating of GHI it was above Kazakhstan.
The Kyrgyz Republic has quite good rate of quantity reduction of the citizens suffering from chronic malnutrition. Improvement in this direction happened against the background of a slow insignificant economic recovery after a deep economic recession caused by radical neoliberal reforms of the 90s. The serious damage on social and economic development was inflicted by mass violent conflicts and periods of political instability. On the classification of the World Bank the KR falls under the countries with low income and food shortages.7 Nevertheless Kyrgyzstan managed to achieve progress in overcoming hunger - the 40th place according to the rating of GHI. In many respects it is connected with efforts of the state in this direction and international aid.
State spending on social needs in the republic is slightly higher than in Russia, exceed them in Kazakhstan approximately twofold.8 Such systems of the UN as Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), UN women, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) lend assistance to the republic. With support of these and other international organizations special projects are also carried out aimed not only at provision of food aid, but in the first turn at the revival of agriculture, increase in enhancement of immunity of the agrarian sector and food system to external influences, settling and prevention of conflicts owing to fight for water and land resources. In particular, in Kyrgyzstan the program of the United Nations Peacebuilding Fund (UNPF) is carried out as a part of the project of the World Food Programme (WFP) on providing food aid in exchange for creation of productive assets, development of agricultural potential in regions of high conflictogenity because of anthropogenic influence on cross-border water and land resources.9 In areas where there were sometimes bloody clashes of Tajiks and Kyrgyz, now they collectively restore and use irrigation canals, resolve issues of joint administration of pastures and fertile territories.
It should be noted that membership in the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) of Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan plays very significant role in promotion of food security and lowering of malnutrition levels in these countries. Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan use privileges when purchasing and transporting food from the states of the union. Common border with Russia gives many benefits for the Republic of Kazakhstan, simplified rules of stay of labor migrants in Russia and their earnings (which they send home and which are on average estimated at 30 percent of GDP of the country) are also very important for the Kyrgyz Republic.
Almost at the same level according to the rating of the Global Hunger Index there are located Turkmenistan - the 52nd place and Uzbekistan - the 54th place. Their rating of GHI was calculated by indicators of 2014-2016. It is necessary to take into account that Uzbekistan in 2016-2017 demonstrated an accelerated growth of social and economic development of which a long stable period of strengthening of key branches of industry and agriculture and also reduction of a share of starving and undereating people took priority. In 1999-2001 the starving (chronically undereating) represented 16,4 percent of all the population of the Republic of Uzbekistan, in 2007-09 - 10,2 percent, in 2014-16 - 6,3 percent. In Turkmenistan, on the contrary, the situation with reduction of a share of the starving was unstable: in 1999-2001 they were 8,2 percent of total population, in 2007-09 - 4,5 percent, and in 2014-16 - 5,5 percent.10 Though in percentage correlation from 1999 to 2016 in Turkmenistan a number of the starving was less, sometimes much more, than in Uzbekistan, the last managed to reduce considerably their share in recent years while it increased in Turkmenistan. The food crisis caused by feverish demand for basic products of the first decade of 2018 in this republic was a consequence of the authorities' sluggishness on its prevention. Bad harvest of 2017 aggravated the problem of food security. Partly such situation is connected with raw export-oriented focus of national economy, insufficient attention to agro-industrial complex in favour of gas industry development, prices surge, reduction of
social support, difficult climatic conditions. Nevertheless Turkmenistan has great opportunities to cope with difficulties in the range of citizens' feeding, in view of that the population of the republic isn't so big as in Uzbekistan.
The situation in Tajikistan is much more difficult, which occupied the 96th place in GHI rating. According to the Hunger Index it is between Mali and Tanzania. It is estimated by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) that 30,1 percent of the population in the republic - 2,6 million people suffer from malnutrition.11 The civil war of 1992-1997 undermined significantly national economy, but for the twenty-year period of the post-war restoration which was followed by powerful international aid, Tajikistan didn't manage to reach any essential achievements in industry, agriculture and social sector. The number of chronically undereating citizens is being reduced slowly and slightly. In 1999-2001 they were 42,4 percent of total population of Turkmenistan, in 2007-09 - 38,6 percent, in 2014-16 -30,1 percent.12 The reasons of such situation first of all come from incompetent economic policy, deficiency of qualified business executives, high level of corruption. The ethno-regional control system of the state which outgrew in family and clan was in Tajikistan inefficient though sometimes in a number of countries of the East it led to social and economic and cultural progress. Also reduction of money transfers from labor migrants in connection with new rules of their stay in Russia has its effect. As Tajikistan isn't a member of EEU they are more difficult and more expensive for its citizens, than for workers from the countries which form part of the economic union. In the region of Europe and Central Asia (EAR) Tajikistan takes the latest place by a share of undereating people and by results of overcoming undernutrition. In general in the region of EAR in 2014-2016 14,3 million people, about 5,6 million of them from Central Asia, suffered from severe forms of lack of adequate nutrition. At the same time as it is noted in the report of FAO after the impressive progress made in previous years lately it is observed stagnation in the region.
Indicators of prevalence of malnutrition in the countries of Central Asia stay almost without changes, also, as well as in the Caucasus. More important obstacle in a way of ensuring food security in the region is poverty.13
Russia has achieved considerable results in recent years by indicators of a share of the starving and rates of their reduction. In 1999-2001 there were chronically undereating 5,1 percent of total population of the Russian Federation, in 2007-09 - 1,4 percent, in 2014-16 - 0,9 percent. Though it gave way to Kazakhstan in the rating of Hunger Index, its general indicators were better. Considering success of the Russian Federation achieved in agriculture and food import substitution in 2016-2017 it is possible to predict further stability of its food security.
Following the results of studies of 2014-2016 the best indicators according to the Global Hunger Index among the CIS got Belarus and as it isn't surprising Ukraine. They entered the most successful category of the least starving countries from 119 countries. Apparently, Ukraine was highly evaluated having the solid margin of safety in production of products and trade with Russia accumulated during previous years. But it ran out quickly in 2017. According to the specialists of FAO and World food programme country is in the category of the states with shortages of food.14 Food security threat sharply increased in 2017 in connection with the continuing armed conflict, inefficiency of control, food impoverishment, prices surge, high level of corruption and notable decrease in social support of citizens.
In general armed conflicts and violence in the world are the main reason of suffering from hunger. From the above-stated table it is obvious, the difficulty of the situation in distressful Afghanistan. In some areas there are about 70 percent of chronically undereating people. The best indicators of famine relief as a rule show the countries with effective institutes of power, economic distribution and planning, a low corruption component, and developed social sphere. An example of that in the CIS, as we see, is Belarus. China for the last decades achieved impressive
reduction of poverty and subsequently starving citizens. At the same time the state can be poor and feel economic pressure from external forces that Cuba perfectly demonstrates. Iran which experienced long-term war with Iraq and being under sanctions managed to keep its social system of assistance of the poor and needy, stability in reduction of number of starving. At the same time as the example of India, accelerated economic growth not necessarily entails successful reduction of poverty and number of starving.
Notes
The report is prepared by IFPRI in cooperation with charitable organizations Welthungerhilfe and Concern Worldwide. Form recommended by editors to reference: K. von Grebmer, J. Bernstein, N. Hossain, T. Brown, N. Prasai, Y. Yohannes, F. Patterson, A. Sonntag, S.-M. Zimmermann, O. Towey, C. Foley. 2017. 2017 Global Hunger Index: The Inequalities of Hunger.
Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute; Bonn: Welthungerhilfe; and Dublin: Concern Worldwide.
Term "hunger" is used by international organizations as a synonym of the term "chronical malnutrition." "Malnutrition" - condition continuing not less than a year, characterized by inability to get a sufficiency of food for relevance in energy, maintaining of normal, active, healthy life. 2017 Global Hunger Index. P. 5, 11. Universal improvement for 27 percent is calculated by four indicators integrated by GHI for 2012-2016. A situation in the sphere of food security and food in the world - 2017. Stability enhancement to external effects for providing peace and food security. FAO, IFAD, UNICEF, WFP and WHO. Rome, 2017. Page of vi, vii, 4, 5, 30. The report is prepared by joint efforts of Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), World Food Programme (WFP) n World Health Organization (WHO).
Diagram made by: http://vawilon.ru/statistika-golodayushhih/ (Access data: 28.02.2018.) Source: Country Trends for the 1992, 2000, 2008, and 2017 Global Hunger Index Scores / Appendix E / EASTERN EUROPE AND THE COMMONWEALTH OF INDEPENDENT STATES. 2017 Global Hunger Index. P. 40.
The table made on the basis of: 2017 Global Hunger Index. Table 2.1 GLOBAL HUNGER INDEX SCORES BY RANK, 1992 GHI, 2000 GHI, 2008 GHI, AND 2017 GHI. P. 13. - means lack of representative data in the report
1
2
3
4
5
of 1992. They aren't represented in the Post-Soviet countries during their presence in the USSR, i.e. for 1991. <5 means less than 5 points that says about low level of hunger. According to the report of 2017 14 countries occupy such top category - Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Chile, Croatia, Cuba, Estonia, Kuwait, Latvia, Lithuania, Montenegro, Slovakia, Turkey, Ukraine and Uruguay. These states are united by joint elements and in the rating countries are located alphabetically without exact indication of the place - all countries are equal and are on 1-14 places. Due to the lack of data these states aren't included in the report: Bahrain, Bhutan, Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Qatar, Comoro Islands, Libya, Papua New Guinea, Syrian Arab Republic, Somalia, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, South Sudan.
7 https://data.worldbank.org/country/kyrgyz-republic (Access data: 15.03.2017.) Uzbekistan and Tajikistan were included in the same group.
8 The State of Food Security and Nutrition in Europe and Central Asia 2017. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Budapest, 2017. FIGURE 10. Public spending on social assistance programmes, % of GDP. Р. 20. The data in the report is taken from: World Bank. 2017b. ASPIRE database. Доступен на: http://datatopics.worldbank.org/aspire/ Washington, D.C. Kyrgyzstan carried out significant progress in restoration of social care in comparison with the 90s when social expenses were suddenly cut down.
9 WFP. 2016. UN PBSO/PBF cross-border cooperation for sustainable peace and development mid-term progress report (Dec 2015 - Oct 2016). WFP Country Office in the Kyrgyz Republic.
1° 2017 Global Hunger Index. DATA UNDERLYING THE CALCULATION OF THE 1992, 2000, 2008, AND 2017 GLOBAL HUNGER INDEX SCORES. Proportion of undernourished in the population (%)'91-'93 '99-'01 '07-'09 '14-'16. Р. 34-35.
11 The State of Food Security and Nutrition in Europe and Central Asia 2017. Р. 5.
12 2017 Global Hunger Index. Р. 35.
13 The State of Food Security and Nutrition in Europe and Central Asia 2017. Р. 5.
14 https://regnum.ru/news/2373553.html. 29.01.2018. (Access data: 17.02.2018.)
