From Inequality and Vulnerability
to Prosperity for All

12 December 2024

A new UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) report examines trade’s role in reducing food insecurity and preventing famine.

Global food insecurity is on the rise, reversing decades of progress in the fight against hunger. The latest data reveal that:

  • Over 280 million suffered from acute hunger in 2023 – a crisis putting their lives at immediate risk.
  • About 733 million faced chronic hunger the same year – around 150 million more than in 2019 – persistently lacking safe, nutritious food.
  • Without urgent action, 582 million could be chronically hungry by 2030.

A new UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) report outlines how trade can help address the hunger crisis and build resilient food systems.

What’s driving global hunger?

The causes of acute food insecurity are complex and interlinked. Conflict, climate change and socioeconomic shocks are key drivers.

  • Armed conflict was the main cause of acute food insecurity for 5 million people in 20 countries in 2022 – almost half of all cases worldwide.
  • Socioeconomic shocks, poverty and inequality, compounded by crises like COVID-19, left 84 million people in 27 countries facing acute food insecurity in 2022, up from 30 million in 2021.
  • Climate change is increasingly contributing to the crisis, with extreme weather causing acute hunger for 77 million people in 18 countries, up from 57 million in 12

How trade can help

Trade can increase food supplies, lower prices and improve access to diverse, nutritious food while safeguarding against local shocks like drought and conflict.

  • Sustaining supplies. For example, imports meet 30% of Africa’s cereal needs, underscoring trade’s role in ensuring food availability.
  • Stabilizing prices and markets: The Black Sea Initiative, brokered by the UN and Türkiye during the war in Ukraine, enabled food and fertilizer exports from Ukraine and Russia, helping reduce the FAO Food Price Index by 23%.

Challenges to address

However, trade can also contribute to higher prices and vulnerabilities, especially in countries heavily dependent on imports.

  • Higher costs: For example, non-tariff measures, such as sanitary standards, can increase food import costs by 20%.
  • Import dependency: Countries facing acute food insecurity are often overly reliant on imports, leaving them highly exposed to global price hikes and supply chain disruptions. For example, Yemen relies on imports for 93% of its cereal needs, and Haiti for 86%.

Making trade work better in the fight against hunger

UN Trade and Development calls for stronger global cooperation and targeted policies to reduce trade-related costs, stabilize food prices, build resilient food systems and promote sustainable agricultural practices.

Actions include:

  • Lower trade barriers: Cut tariffs and reduce hidden costs of non-tariff measures to food insecure countries.
  • Ensure access during crises: Eliminate tariffs on food aid and essential inputs and avoid export restrictions.
  • Reduce vulnerabilities to global markets: Strengthen regional trade and cooperation to diversify and shorten supply chains.
  • Boost export capacity: Invest in infrastructure like ports, transport networks and storage facilities in developing countries while supporting producers in these nations to meet international standards.
  • Promote resilient farming: Encourage climate-smart and sustainable agriculture to reduce vulnerabilities to climate change.

With decisive action and global collaboration, trade can help eliminate hunger. By stabilizing food systems and promoting sustainability, trade can address today’s challenges while creating a resilient, equitable global food system for the future.