The Hunger And Nutrition Commitment Index (HANCI 2012)

The 2012 HANCI report finds that low income countries like Malawi and Madagascar and lower middle income Guatemala, are leading the charge against hunger and undernutrition, whilst economic powerhouses such as India and Nigeria are failing some of their most vulnerable citizens.

Key findings include:

1. Guatemala claims top spot and Guinea Bissau is worst performing country in 2012. When compared to the other 44 countries that were assessed, Guatemala performs best for both hunger and nutrition commitment. It does especially well in terms of nutrition commitment. This is very encouraging as particularly undernutrition constitutes a major challenge for Guatemala. Guinea Bissau shows the lowest level of political commitment to reduce hunger and undernutrition. This is very worrying, because the country faces very serious hunger and nutrition challenges.

2. Economic growth has not necessarily led to a commitment from governments to tackle hunger and undernutrition. Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia are global hotspots of hunger and undernutrition. Here, not only is hunger and undernutrition prevalence high, this is also where hunger is increasing most rapidly. Many countries within these regions have achieved substantial and sustained economic growth over the last decade. This makes it possible for governments to more effectively address hunger and undernutrition. Yet, progress on reducing hunger and undernutrition is either too slow (e.g. South Asia) or stagnating (sub-Saharan Africa).

3. Countries’ commitment to hunger reduction do not tally with their commitment to improving nutrition. In fact, the report found a low correlation between the two. This is demonstrated by the divergent performance of countries such as Nepal, South Africa and Mali.