Tanzania at extremely alarming level of hunger, Index reveals

Tanzania is among 33 countries in the world, which has extremely alarming levels of hunger. The 2008 Global Hunger Index indicates that the Democratic Republic of Congo scored the worst, followed by Eritrea, Burundi, Niger, Sierra Leone, Liberia and Ethiopia. According to the index released by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) in conjunction with Welthungerhilfe and Concern Worldwide, the index ranks countries according to the prevalence of child malnutrition, rates of child mortality and the proportion of people who are calories deficient. The global Hunger Index has been released for the World Food Day which is marked today (October 16). IFPRI Director General Joachim von Braun said the world has made only slow progress in reducing hunger in past decades with dramatic differences among countries and regions. ``Population and income growth, high energy prices, bio-fuels, science and technology, climate change, globalisation and urbanisation are introducing drastic changes to food consumption, production and markets. ``The current financial crisis complicates the picture. It actually brings some short-term relief for hungry people, as it contributes to reduced commodity prices. But the credit crunch makes access to capital difficult, including for agriculture and that adds another obstacle for overcoming the food crisis.`` Braun said. He said IFPRI recommends three areas for high-priority policy actions to address the current food crisis and improve the long-term functioning of the world food system which are productivity and research, nutrition and social protection markets and trade. He noted that governments and the global community should begin to correct previous failures in agricultural policy by investing in agriculture and food production, setting up reliable systems for assisting the most vulnerable people in a timely way, and establishing a fair global trading system and a conductive investment environment.