The World is challenged with the ugly face of hunger, poverty and malnutrition. According to the World Food Programme of the United Nations, 821 million people – one in nine – still go to bed on an empty stomach each night. Even more – one in three – suffer from some form of malnutrition.
In 2015 the global community adopted the 17 Global Goals for Sustainable Development to improve people’s lives by 2030. Goal 2 – Zero Hunger – pledges to end hunger, achieve food security, improve nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture, and is the priority of the World Food Programme.
Times Lives reports that malnutrition remains a serious problem facing South African children‚ with Gauteng‚ Free State and KwaZulu-Natal having the highest number of young children who are stunted - while the North West and Western Cape have the highest percentage of children who are underweight.
This is contained in a report released by Statistics South Africa on the latest evidence on the realisation of government’s early childhood development (ECD) goals for children aged from birth to six years. The report found that Gauteng (34.2%)‚ Free State (33.5%) and KwaZulu-Natal (28.5%) had the highest percentage of children who were stunted‚ compared to other provinces. North West (12.6%) and Western Cape (11.9%) had the highest percentage of children who were underweight.