The Philippine situation in terms of “food insecurity” is the worst in Southeast Asia, as a United Nations study has found that about 51 million Filipinos have experienced moderate or severe instances of the situation from 2021 to 2023.
The UN’s latest report on the State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World showed that the country had the highest number of moderately or severely food-insecure individuals in the region, comprising nearly half of the 115.8 million people facing such difficulty in their daily life.
In the region, Myanmar came in a far second with 17.5 million, followed by Indonesia with 13.6 million, and Vietnam with 10.6 million.
According to the UN, a person is considered food insecure if they lack regular access to safe and nutritious food for normal growth and development and for an active and healthy life.
On the other hand , food security is defined as a situation where all the people, at all times, have physical, social, and economic access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs and food preferences.
The rate of moderate or severe food insecurity in the total population is 44.1 percent in the Philippines, which is the third highest in the region. Additionally, the report also showed that around 6.9 million Filipinos were undernourished during the period of 2021-23.
The average cost of a healthy diet in the country also increased to $4.10 per person daily in 2022, higher than the $3.84 in 2021, and more expensive than the world average of $3.96 per person.
“The assessment of global hunger in 2023, measured by the prevalence of undernourishment reveals a continuing lack of progress towards the goal of Zero Hunger. After rising sharply from 2019 to 2021, the proportion of the world population facing hunger persisted at virtually the same level for three consecutive years,” the United Nations said.
Having the biggest food insecure population in the region, with numbers more than twice that of the second placer, should be cause for serious concern among Filipinos and their government, as it points to a gross inability to properly feed a huge chunk of the nation. If that is not enough reason for government to take this issue seriously, then we might have to brace ourselves for the normalization of food insecurity in this country.*
