Report on Sustainable Development Goals(SDG's) in Pakistan
Goal 2: Zero Hunger
Sustainable Development Goals in Pakistan
SDG Goal 2: Zero Hunger Targets
SDG Goal 2: Zero Hunger Indicators
Goal 2: Zero Hunger Partners in Pakistan
Goal 2: Zero Hunger Contributor in Pakistan
Goal 2: Zero Hunger Challenges In Pakistan
Report on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs); Goal 2: Zero Hunger
1. 1
Report on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs);
Goal 2: Zero Hunger
Course Title: Strategic Management
Group: 7
Mirza Muhammad Essa Baig
BBA(HHCM) 3rd
Batch; 8th
Semester
14-10-2021
2. 2
S no. Table of Contents
Page
no.
1 Abstract 3
2 Introduction 3
3 History 4
4 Goals 5
5 Goal 2; Zero Hunger 5
6 Facts and Figures 7
7 Zero Hunger Targets & Indicators: 8
8 Countries Overall Progress Towards Goal 2 10
9 United States Progress Towards SDG 2 10
10 China Progress Towards SDG 2 12
11 India Progress Towards SDG 2 14
12 Pakistan’s Progress on Sustainable Development Goals 17
13 National Initiative for Sustainable Development Goals 18
14 Pakistan’s Progress on SDG 2; Zero Hunger 20
15 Facts and Figures on SDG 2; Zero Hunger 26
16 Partners 27
17 Challenges to the progress: 29
18 Recommendation 30
19 Conclusion 30
20 References 31-32
3. 3
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs); Goal 2: Zero Hunger
Abstract:
The SDGs seek to eradicate allkinds of hunger and malnutrition by 2030, ensuring that allpeople–
especially children–have enough and nutritious food throughout the year. This includes
encouraging sustainable agriculture, assisting small-scale farmers, and ensuring equal access to
resources, expertise, and marketplaces. International collaboration is also required to secure
infrastructure development and innovation to increase agricultural production. The Sustainable
Development Goals serve as a road map for achieving a better and more sustainable future ifor
everybody. “The Sustainable Development Goals are more important now than ever. Now is the
time to secure the well-being of people, economies, societies and our planet”.
Introduction:
The United Nations adopted the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs),alsoknown as the Global
Goals, in 2015 as a global call to action to eliminate poverty, protect the environment, and
ensuring that by 2030, all individuals enjoy peace and prosperity. The 17 SDGs are
interconnected; they recognized that actions in one area have an impact on outcomes in others
and that development must balance social, economic, and environmental sustainability (UNDP,
Home: SDGS, 2021)1
The General Assembly adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in September
2015, which includes 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The new Agenda emphasizes a
holistic approach to achieving sustainable development for all, based on the idea of “leaving no
one behind.”. (UnitedNations)2. The year 2016 marks the primary year of the implementation of
the SDGs.
Throughout its 15-year lifetime, Envision2030 will seek to promote disability mainstreaming and
SDG implementation. The SDGs specifically include disability and people with disabilities.
Disabilityis addressed in several areas of the SDGs, including education, growth and employment,
inequality, human settlement accessibility, and data collecting and monitoring of the SDGs.
Indeed, the SDGs address a wide range of social and economic development concerns, such as
energy, urbanization, water, the environment, and social justice, as well as poverty, hunger,
healthcare, educational, environmental issues, and gender equality. Clearly, there are several
4. 4
theoretical and practical problems that must be addressed in order to aid policymakers and
decision-makers in their efforts to convert theories into practice. (Sant’Anna, 2018)3
The Sustainable Development Goals serve as a road map for achieving a better and more
sustainablefuture iifor everybody. “The Sustainable Development Goals are more important now
than ever. Now is the time to secure the well-being of people, economies, societies and our
planet”.
History:
The SDGs are the result of decades of effort by governments and the UN, notably the UN
Department of Economic and SocialAffairs. (Nations, Goal: Divisionfor Sustainable Development
Goals (DSDG))4
More than 178 nations approved Agenda 21, a comprehensive plan of action to establish
a worldwide partnership for sustainable development to enhance human lives and
safeguard the environment, at the Earth Summit at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on June 1992.
At the Millennium Summit in September 2000 at UN Headquarters in New York, member
states unanimously endorsed the Millennium Declaration. The Summit resulted in the
development of eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)aimed at reducing extreme
poverty by 2015.
The Johannesburg Declaration on Environmental Sustainability and the Strategy of
Implementation, adopted at the World Summit on Sustainable Development in South
Africa in 2002, acknowledged the global community's commitments to poverty
eradication and environmental protection, and expanded on Agenda 21 and the
Millennium Declaration by putting a greater emphasis on multilateral partnerships.
In June 2012, Member of States adopted the result "The Future We Want" from the
United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20) in Riode Janeiro, Brazil,
in which they decided,, to initiate an approach to develop a set of SDGs to build on the
MDGs and to establish the UN High-level Political Forum on Environmental Sustainability.
Other measures for achieving sustainable development were included in the Rio+20
result, such as requirements for future programs of work in development funding, small
island developing nations, and others.
The General Assembly established a 30-member Open Working Group in 2013 to prepare
a proposal on the SDGs.
The General Assembly began negotiating the post-2015 development agenda in January
2015. The process concluded in the approval of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable
Development, which included 17 SDGs, at the UN Sustainable Development Summit in
September 2015.
With the approval of many significant accords, 2015 was a watershed year for
multilateralism and international policymaking:
o Disaster Risk Reduction Framework of Sendai (March 2015)
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o Addis Ababa Action Agenda on Development Financing (July 2015)
o Transforming our World: In September 2015, the United Nations Sustainable
Development Summit in New York approved the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable
Development, which includes 17 SDGs.
o Climate Change Agreement in Paris (December 2015)
o The annual High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development is now the
primary UN venue for monitoring and reviewing the SDGs. (Nations, Goal: Division
for Sustainable Development Goals (DSDG))5
Goals:
The 17 SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals) that will revolutionize our world:
1. No Poverty
2. Zero Hunger
3. Good Health and Well-being
4. Quality Education
5. Gender Equality
6. Clean Water and Sanitation
7. Affordable and Clean Energy
8. Decent Work and Economic Growth
9. Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure
10. Reduced Inequality
11. Sustainable Cities and Communities
12. Responsible Consumption and Production
13. Climate Action
14. Life Below Water
15. Life on Land
16. Peace and Justice Strong Institutions
17. Partnerships to achieve the Goal (UnitedNations)6
Goal 2; Zero Hunger:
Means: End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable
agriculture. The UN explains: "It is time to rethink how we grow, share and consume our food”.
(Tracker, 2021)7
Introduction:
Nature offers direct sources of food as well as a variety of natural ecosystems (for example,
pollination, soil formation, biogeochemical cycles, and water control) that support agricultural
operations and contribute to food security and nutrition. Increasing global population and
increasing consumption habits impose burden on the environment, forcing the production of
6. 6
food for an extra two billion people by 2030, all while protecting and improving the natural
resource bases on which upcoming generations depends. Eradicating hunger requires not just
improving access to nutritious food, but also maintaining that food production is sustainable,
both in terms of food supply and environmental conservation. (Institute, 2021)8.This is crucial
since inappropriate agricultural development has resulted in major environmental issues such as
soil degradation, water contamination from agrochemicals, and greenhouse gas emissions.
Climate change and environmental disasters such as water shortages, storms, landslide,
earthquake and floods have a major impact on food supply. Disaster risk management, as well as
adaptation and mitigation to climate change, are essential to increasing harvest quality and
quantity. (UNEP, 2021)9
Our lands, freshwater, oceans, forests, and ecosystem are all being rapidly destroyed. Climate
change is increasing the dangers connected with calamities such as droughts and floods, placing
even greater strain on the resources on which we depend. Many rural women and men are
unable to make ends meet on their farm, pushing them to travel to cities in search of work.
(Tracker, 2021)7.One of the major problems of our time is to eliminate hunger and malnutrition.
Not only can the effects of insufficient – or incorrect – food create misery and bad health, but
they also restrict growth in many other areas of development, such as employment and
education. Every day, so many families throughout the world struggle to provide a healthy diet
for their children. (Programme U. W., 2021)10
Because too fast economic expansion and increasing agricultural production, the number of
undernourished individuals has decreased by about half in the last two decades. Many
developing countries that were formerly afflicted by famine and hunger can today fulfil their
nutritional requirements. Central and East Asia, Latin America, and the Caribbean have all made
significant progress in eliminating severe hunger. Unfortunately, severe hunger and malnutrition
continue to be a major obstacle to growth in many nations. As of 2017, 821 million people were
projected to be chronically malnourished, frequently as a direct result of environmental damage,
drought, and biodiversity loss. More than 90 million children under the age of five are extremely
underweight. Malnourishment and severe food shortages appear to be on the rise over nearly all
of Africa, as well as in South America. (UNDP, Home: SDGS ZERO HUNGER, 2021)11
Vision:
The Zero Hunger vision of a world free of hunger, malnutrition, and rural poverty accomplished
via an integrated strategy and food system reform is completely connected with the 2030
Agenda, which lays out the goals and targets that must be met to make this vision a reality.
(Nations, Home: Pathways to Zero Hunger)12
Mission:
The Zero Hunger mission is to bring all stakeholders together to address the importance of food
security, nutrition, and inclusive, sustainable, and resilient agriculture in delivering on the
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promise of the 2030 Agenda, as well as to start encouraging, interact, accelerate, and amplify
collaborative action to create food systems that deliver for all people. (Nations, Home: Pathways
to Zero Hunger)12
World Food Program’s vision:
The World Food Program has outlined five steps to achieving zero hunger:
1. Put the furthest behind first: “To exploit the full potential of our globalized economy,
national governments must enhance social security measures for the most vulnerable.”
2. Pave the road from farm to market: “We must also enhance rural infrastructure,
especially roads, warehousing, and electricity, to enable farmers to access a larger
customer base.”
3. Reduce food waste: Food is commonly wasted on the plate in wealthy nations, but it is
lost during production in underdeveloped countries, when crops go unused or
unprocessed due to poor warehousing or farmers' inability to get their products to
market.”
4. Encourage a sustainable variety of crops: “Today, four crops (rice, wheat, maize, and soy)
contribute for 60 percent of the calories consumed worldwide. Addressing the issues of
climate change, availability of food, and access to food would need supporting farmers in
exploring and identifying a wider range of crops.”
5. Make nutrition a priority, starting with a child’s first 1,000 days: “We must guarantee that
children and nursing mothers have access to nutritional foods in order to prevent
malnutrition and promote healthy development.” (Programme W. F., World Food
Programme Insight/Five Steps to Zero Hunger, 2017)13 (VEGA, 2020)14
The SDGs seek to eradicate allkinds of hunger and malnutrition by 2030, ensuring that allpeople–
especially children–have adequate nutritious food throughout the year. This includes
encouraging sustainablefarming, assisting small-scalefarmers,andensuring equal access toland,
equipment, and marketplaces. International collaboration is also required to secure
infrastructural development and technology to increase agricultural production.
Facts and Figures:
After years of continuous reduction, the number of individuals suffering from hunger – as
assessedbythe prevalence of undernutrition – began to gradually climb againin 2015. According
to current estimates, almost 690 million people, or 8.9 percent of the world's population, are
hungry - an increase of 10 million in one year and nearly 60 million in five years.
The majority of the world's hungry (381 million) are still situated in Asia. More than 250
million people living in Africa, where the number of malnourished people is increasing
faster than anyplace else on the planet.
8. 8
In 2019, approximately 750 million people – or roughly one in every 10 individuals
worldwide – facedacute food insecurity & an estimated 2 billion people worldwide lacked
regular access to safe, healthy, and adequate food.
If current trends continue, the number of people suffering from hunger would exceed 840
million by 2030, or 9.8% percent of the world population.
Undernutrition impacted 144 million children under the age of five in 2019, with three-
quarters of those affected living in Southern Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa.
In 2019, 6.9 % (or 47 million) of kids under the age of five were suffering from wasting,
also known as acute undernourishment, which is caused by a lack of nutrients and illness.
821 million
The number of undernourished people reached 821 million in 2017.
In 2017 Asia accounted for nearly two thirds, 63 percent, of the world’s hungry.
Nearly 151 million children under five, 22 percent, were still stunted in 2017.
More than 1 in 8 adults is obese.
1 in 3 women of reproductive age is anemic.
26 percent of workers are employed in agriculture
As per the World Food Programme, 135 million people are starving as a result of man-made
conflicts, climate change, and economic downturns. The COVID-19 pandemic has the potential
to treble that amount, placing an extra 130 million people at danger of being hungry by the end
of 2020. (NATIONS, 2021)15
Zero Hunger Targets & Indicators:
For SDG 2, the UN has established eight targets and thirteen indicators. Targets define the goals,
and Indicators are the measures that the world uses to determine if these goals are met.
1. Target 2.1: Universal access to safe and nutritious food
o SDG Indicator 2.1.1: Prevalence of undernourishment
o SDG Indicator 2.1.2: Prevalence of food insecurity
2. Target 2.2: End all forms of malnutrition
o SDG Indicator 2.2.1: Prevalence of childhood stunting
o SDG Indicator 2.2.2: Prevalence of childhood malnutrition (wasting or overweight)
3. Target 2.3: Double the productivity and incomes of small-scale food producers
o SDG Indicator 2.3.1: Production per labour unit
o SDG Indicator 2.3.2: Income of small-scale food producers
4. Target 2.4: Sustainable food production and resilient agricultural practices
o SDG Indicator 2.4.1: Sustainable food production
5. Target 2.5: Maintain the genetic diversity in food production
o SDG Indicator 2.5.1: Genetic resources in conservation facilities
o SDG Indicator 2.5.2: Local breeds at risk of extinction
6. Target 2.A: Invest inrural infrastructure, agricultural research, technology and genebanks
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o SDG Indicator 2.A.1: Agriculture orientation index
o SDG Indicator 2.A.2: Official flows to agriculture
7. Target 2.B: Prevent agriculturaltrade restrictions, market distortions and export subsidies
o SDG Indicator 2.B.1: Agricultural export subsidies
8. Target 2.C: Ensure stable food commodity markets and timely access to information
o SDG INDICATOR 2.C.1: Food price anomalies (Tracker, 2021)7
TARGET 2.1: Universal Access to Safe and Nutritious Food
By 2030, end hunger and ensure access by all people, in particular the poor and
people in vulnerable situations, including infants, to safe,nutritious and sufficientfood all
year round.
TARGET 2.2: End All Forms of Malnutrition
By 2030, end all forms of malnutrition, including achieving, by 2025, the
internationally agreed targets on stunting and wasting in children under 5 years of age,
and address the nutritional needs of adolescent girls, pregnant and lactating women and
older persons.
TARGET 2.3: Double the Productivity and Incomes of Small-Scale Food Producers
By 2030, double the agricultural productivity and incomes of small-scale food
producers, in particular women, indigenous peoples, family farmers, pastoralists and
fishers, including through secure and equal access to land, other productive resources
and inputs, knowledge, financial services, markets and opportunities for value addition
and non-farm employment.
TARGET 2.4: Sustainable Food Production and Resilient Agricultural Practices
By 2030, ensure sustainable food production systems and implement resilient
agricultural practices that increase productivity and production, that help maintain
ecosystems,that strengthen capacity for adaptation to climate change,extreme weather,
drought, flooding and other disasters and that progressivelyimprove land and soilquality.
TARGET 2.5: Maintain the Genetic Diversity in Food Production
By 2020, maintain the genetic diversity of seeds, cultivated plants and farmed and
domesticated animals and their related wild species, including through soundly managed
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and diversified seed and plant banks at the national, regional and international levels,and
promote access to and fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from the utilization
of genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge, as internationally agreed.
TARGET 2.A: Invest in Rural Infrastructure, Agricultural Research, Technology and Gene
Banks
Increase investment, including through enhanced international cooperation, in
rural infrastructure, agricultural research and extension services, technology
development and plant and livestock gene banks in order to enhance agricultural
productive capacity in developing countries, in particular least developed countries.
TARGET 2.B: Prevent Agricultural Trade Restrictions, Market Distortions and Export
Subsidies
Correct and prevent trade restrictions and distortions in world agricultural
markets, including through the parallel elimination of all forms of agricultural export
subsidies and allexport measures with equivalent effect, in accordance with the mandate
of the Doha Development Round.
TARGET 2.C: Ensure Stable Food Commodity Markets and Timely Access TO
INFORMATION
Adopt measures to ensure the proper functioning of food commodity markets and
their derivatives and facilitate timely access to market information, including on food
reserves, in order to help limit extreme food price volatility. (Programme U. N., 2021)16
Countries Overall Progress Towards Goal 2:
36.01 37.55
34.35
36.35
51.03
36.85
39.56
42.57
44.25
52.44
66.77
71.54
71.93
76.39
81.1
70.03
75.47
66.04 66.26
69.14
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021
Zero Hunger - Score
Pakistan India China US
11. 11
Figure 1: Sustainable Development Goal Index
United States Progress Towards SDG 2:
The United States is working to implement the Sustainable Development Goals(link is external) –
known as the SDGs or Global Goals – both domestically and abroad. The U.S. government helped
shape the Sustainable Development Goals as part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable
Development(link is external).
The goals are ambitious, measurable and action-oriented.
To help achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, the United States will continue to
partner(link is external)with countries and communities around the world to tackle some of the
most intractable problems such as child and maternal death, hunger, gender inequality and
climate change. “We will do so in a way that leaves no one behind”
The 17 Sustainable Development Goals are designed to work together. We are taking a holistic
approach to achieve the Goals – one that respects and upholds the priorities of the communities
in which we work and the people we aim to assist.
Figure
2:https://knoema.com/SDGIX2019/sustainable-development-goal-index?country=1002320-united-states
70.03
75.47
66.04 66.26
69.14
60
62
64
66
68
70
72
74
76
78
2 0 1 7 2 0 1 8 2 0 1 9 2 0 2 0 2 0 2 1
YEARS
US Zero Hunger- Score
US
12. 12
Figure 3: https://knoema.com/SDGIX2019/sustainable-development-goal-index?country=1002320-united-states
China Progress Towards SDG 2:
In the 2020 Global Hunger Index, China is one of 17 countries with a GHI score of less than 5.
These countries are not assigned individual ranks, but rather are collectively ranked 1–17 out of
the 107 countries with sufficient data to calculate 2020 GHI scores. Differences between their
scores are minimal. With a score of under 5, Chinahas alevel of hunger that is low. (Index, Global
Hunger Index/China, 2021)
25
42
35 35
31 32
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021
Years
US Global Index Rank
US
Figure 4: https://www.globalhungerindex.org/china.html
14. 14
Figure 7:https://knoema.com/SDGIX2019/sustainable-development-goal-index?country=1000380-china#
India Progress Towards SDG 2:
In the 2020 Global Hunger Index, India ranks 94th out of the 107 countries with sufficient data to
calculate 2020 GHI scores. With a score of 27.2, India has a level of hunger that is serious.
What progress has India made according to the GHI?
Since 2000 India has made substantial progress, but there are still areas of concern, particularly
regarding child nutrition. Since 2000, the proportion of undernourished in the population and
the under-five child mortality have decreased to a relatively low level. While child stunting has
seen a significant decrease as well—from 54.2 percent in 2000 to 34.7 percent in 2020—it is still
considered very high. At 17.3 percent—according to the latest data—India has the highest child
wasting rate of all countries covered in the GHI. This rate is slightly higher than it was in 1998–
1999, when it was 17.1 percent. (Index, Global Hunger Index/India, 2021)
66.77 71.54 71.93 76.39 81.1
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
2 0 1 7 2 0 1 8 2 0 1 9 2 0 2 0 2 0 2 1
SCORE
YEARS
China Zero Hunger- Score
China
17. 17
Pakistan’s Progress on Sustainable Development Goals:
Pakistan has prioritized the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) which will enable us to join
the league of upper middle-class countries by 2030. Pakistan was the first country to adopt SDGs
2030 agenda through a unanimous resolution of the Parliament of Pakistan.
Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development:
The 2030 Agenda is a plan of action for people, planet and prosperity. It also seeks to strengthen
universal peace in larger freedom. Which recognizes that eradicating poverty in all its forms and
dimensions, including extreme poverty, is the greatest global challenge and an indispensable
requirement for sustainable development. All countries and all stakeholders, acting in
collaborative partnership, will implement this plan. (Unit, 2021)17
We are resolved to free the human race from the tyranny of poverty and want and to heal and
secure our planet. We are determined to take the bold and transformative steps which are
urgently needed to shift the world onto a sustainable and resilient path. As we embark on this
collective journey, we pledge that no one will be left behind. (Unit, 2021)17
The 17 Sustainable Development Goals and 169 targets which we are announcing today
demonstrate the scale and ambition of this new universal Agenda. They seek to build on the
Millennium Development Goals and complete what these did not achieve. They seek to realize
the human rights of all and to achieve gender equality and the empowerment of all women and
girls. They are integrated and indivisible and balance the three dimensions of sustainable
development: the economic, social and environmental. (Unit, 2021)17
The Goals and targets will stimulate action over the next fifteen years in areas of critical
importance for humanity and the planet:
People:
We are determined to end poverty and hunger,
in all their forms and dimensions, and to ensure
that all human beings can fulfil their potential in
dignity and equality and in a healthy
environment.
Planet:
We are determined to protect the planet from
degradation, including through sustainable
consumption and production, sustainably
managing its natural resources and taking
urgent action on climate change, so that it can
support the needs of the present and future
generations.
18. 18
Prosperity:
We are determined to ensure that all human beings can enjoy prosperous and fulfilling
lives and that economic, socialand technological progress occurs in harmony with nature.
Peace:
We are determined to foster peaceful, just and inclusive societies which are free from
fear and violence. There can be no sustainable development without peace and no peace
without sustainable development.
Partnership:
We are determined to mobilize the means required to implement this Agenda through a
revitalized Global Partnership for Sustainable Development, based on a spirit of
strengthened globalsolidarity, focused in particular on the needs of the poorest and most
vulnerable and with the participation of allcountries, allstakeholders and allpeople (Unit,
2021)17
The interlinkages and integrated nature of the Sustainable Development Goals are of crucial
importance in ensuring that the purpose of the new Agenda is realized. If we realize our
ambitions across the full extent of the Agenda, the lives of all will be profoundly improved and
our world will be transformed for the better. (Unit, 2021)
The government of Pakistan conducted discussions on the post-Millennium Development Goals
(MDGs) with all stakeholders for coordinating and strengthening efforts at federal and provincial
levels to achieve Pakistan's sustainable development and poverty reduction targets. The
consultation process emphasized the need for national categorization of SDGs, improved data
collection and enforcement of monitoring mechanisms. (Unit, 2021)
The seven pillars of Vision-2025 are fully aligned with the SDGs, providing a comprehensive long-
term strategy for achieving inclusive growth and sustainable development. (Unit, 2021)
National Initiative for Sustainable Development Goals
Ministry of Planning, Development & Special Initiatives (MoP&SI), Government of Pakistan,
Planning & Development Departments of provincial governments with the support of UNDP –
Pakistan has launched a five years joint project of "National Initiative for Sustainable
Development Goals to institutionalize 2030 Agenda.
At the national level Federal SDGs Support Unit was established at the ministry with mandate to
ensure early instutionalization of SDGs to provide coordination and advisory to respective
ministries and line departments. Technical experts of relevant fields are part of the unit including
Social Advisor, Economic Advisor, I.T/ Data Analyst, Research Analyst, M&E Officer, Admin &
Finance Officer and Communications Specialist.
The initiative brings together the planning, financing and statistical institutions to work
collectively to lay foundation of SDGs implementation in the country.
19. 19
The institutional mechanism for coordination & oversight and management arrangements can
be well explained through the below mentioned overall structure of the project:
Unit is working on the following activities to support SDGs implementation.
Policies and Plans Data Reporting Financing Innovation
Mainstreaming SDGs in
local development plans
and strategies clearly
delineating the resource
requirements
Strengthening
coordination,
reporting and
monitoring
mechanisms for
SDGs
Financing flows
increasingly
aligned with
2030 Agenda
Supporting
integrated and
innovative
approaches to
accelerate progress
on SDGs on priority
areas
The Unit is actively undertaking coordination, reporting, and monitoring progress towards SDGs,
and providing policy, research, and knowledge management support for SDGs. At the same time,
the team is working towards enhanced awareness raising amongst stakeholders about Agenda
2030 and sustainable development goals through engagement using multiple communication
activities and tools. (Unit, National Initiative for Sustainable Development Goals/Home, 2021)
SDGs Section, Ministry of Planning Development & Special Initiatives (MoP&SI)
A dedicated SDGs Section has been formed at the federal level in the Ministry of Planning,
Development & Special Initiatives (MoP&SI) to monitor and to coordinate as a national
coordinating entity.
UNDP is supporting the Ministry of Planning, Development & Special Initiatives (MoP&SI),
Government of Pakistan for localizing the SDGs by applying UNDG MAPS approach focusing
following four project outputs:
Mainstreaming SDGs in Plans, Policies and Resource Allocation aligned to 2030 Agenda
SDGs monitoring, reporting and evaluation capacities strengthened
Financing flows increasingly aligned with 2030 Agenda
Innovative approaches applied to accelerate progress on priority SDGs
20. 20
Collectively, all partners can support communication of the new agenda, strengthening
partnerships for implementation, and filling in the gaps in available data for monitoring and
review. (Unit, National Initiative for Sustainable Development Goals/Home, 2021)
Pakistan’s Progress on SDG 2; Zero Hunger:
Introduction:
Over the years, the global prevalence of hunger has increased; it is measured by the prevalence
of undernourishment. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), 8.9% of the
world population is hungry. FAO estimates that the prevalence of undernourishment in Pakistan
to average 12.9% between 2018-2020, which has increased by .07% from the average of 2017-
2019, which means in 2020 hunger in Pakistan will increase, which may or may not be related to
the pandemic. (IIPS, 2021)18
Figure 12: https://knoema.com/SDGIX2019/sustainable-development-goal-index?country=1001320-pakistan
In the 2020 Global Hunger Index, Pakistan ranks 88th out of the 107 countries with sufficient
data to calculate 2020 GHI scores. With a score of 24.6, Pakistan has a level of hunger that
is serious. (Index, Global Hunger Index/Pakistan, 2021)
36.01 37.55 34.35 36.35
51.03
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021
YEARS
Pakistan Zero Hunger - Score
Score
25. 25
Figure 19:https://idea.usaid.gov/cd/pakistan/hunger-and-food-security#tab-nutrition
Pakistan’s Progress on SDGs?
Before diving into the specifics, it is important to mention general milestones that the country
achieved towards surmounting the 2030 SDG targets. According to the National Voluntary
Review, a 2019 review of Pakistan’s SDG progress, Pakistan developed SDG taskforces on
provincial and federal levels to achieve its pledge targets along with seven SDG Support Units at
federal, provincial, and federally administered units. The National Economic Council, the
country’s apex economic policy-making body approved a National SDG framework, and in 2019
Ehsaas Programme was launched with many projects to achieve the SGD targets. (IIPS, 2021)18
Has Pakistan achieved its SDG 2 targets?
Coming to the second SDG, Pakistan’s main target is reducing stunting in children under the age
of five. The country wants its stunting levels to come to 10% instead of 44.8%, the baseline. The
government is more focused on poverty alleviation—SDG one. The good news is that the country
26. 26
was set to reduce the level of stunting in children under the age of five to 10% by 2030, and in
2019 the stunting level had reduced to 31.5%. There were some other minor achievements as
well like the country gave tax exemptions on food fortifying equipment. The country also started
soup kitchens to fight hunger. (IIPS, 2021)18
How many policies did Pakistan make on SDG 2?
Furthermore, the country produced only two relevant policies pertaining to this SDG in the post-
2015 era, namely The Multi-Sectorial National Nutrition Policy and the 2017 Food Security Policy.
When compared to other policies that target other SDGs this number is fairly low. (IIPS, 2021)18
Facts and Figures on SDG 2; Zero Hunger:
Over the years, Pakistan has become a food surplus country and a major producer of wheat
which it distributes to needy populations through various mechanisms (Programme W. F.,
Home/Where we work/Pakistan, 2021)19
The national nutrition survey 2018 showed that 36.9% of the population faces food
insecurity
The survey also showed the second highest rate of malnutrition in the region with 18% of
children under 5 suffer from acute malnutrition
Around 40% of the children under 5 are stunted and 29% are underweight.
only one in seven children aged 6–23 months receives a meal with minimum dietary
diversity
With at least four different food groups, and around 82% children are deprived of the
minimum number of the meals a day.
An average Pakistani household spends 50.8 percent of monthly income on food.
Pakistan actually has a surplus of food. However, instead of being distributed to its own
people, much of this food is exported. From mid-2018 to mid-2019, around a halfmillion tons
of wheat and more than seven million tons of rice were exported from Pakistan. (Cohen,
2020)
One in five Pakistani’s are not malnourished because there is a lack of food availability, but
because of socio-economic factors that prevent them from accessing the country’s abundant
resources. However, even if Pakistani’s had more access to the wheat and rice resources of
their country, these crops alone cannot provide a nutritious and sustainable diet. (Cohen,
2020)
FOOD ASSISTANCE FACT SHEET - PAKISTAN (USAID, 2021)
Situation: (USAID, 2021)
Chronic poverty, recurring disasters, and political and economic volatility drive undernutrition
and food insecurity in some areas of Pakistan. More than 20 percent of Pakistan’s population is
27. 27
undernourished, and nearly 45 percent of children younger than five years of age are stunted,
according to the UN World Food Program (WFP).
Pakistan is also prone to extreme weather and disasters. Since 2013, drought has become a
frequent phenomenon in Pakistan, affecting livelihoods and household food security in parts
Balochistan and Sindh provinces, the UN Food Security Cluster (FSC) reports. The FSC estimated
that drought affected approximately 5 million people in 26 districts of Balochistan and Sindh
provinces in 2019. As of July 2019, approximately 1.3 million people were experiencing Crisis (IPC
3) and Emergency (IPC 4) levels of acute food insecurity in seven drought-affected districts in
Sindh Province, according to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification.
Heavy precipitation—including rain and snow—affected approximately 1 million households in
Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) and Gilgit-Baltistan regions and Balochistan and Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) provinces in early- and mid-January, the UN Office for the Coordination of
Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reports. Road blockages and severe weather prevented many
affected households from relocating to safer areas and limited relief actors’ access to households
in need of assistance in remote affected areas as of late January, according to OCHA. (USAID,
2021)
*The Integrated Food Security PhaseClassification (IPC) is a standardized tool that aims to classify the severity and
magnitude of acute food insecurity. The IPC scale,which is comparableacrosscountries,ranges from Minimal (IPC
1) to Famine (IPC 5).
Response: (USAID, 2021)
In FY 2020 to date, USAID’s Office of Food for Peace (FFP)contributed $2 million to the UN
Children’s Fund (UNICEF) to provide preventive and curative community nutrition services,
including the provision of therapeutic foods, for children younger than five years of age suffering
from severe acute malnutrition.
With FFP support, WFP is providing emergency in-kind food assistance to approximately 401,000
people affected by extreme winter conditions in AJK and Balochistan from February to June
2020.
Additionally, WFP continues to provide conditional in-kind food assistance to vulnerable
communities, small farmers, and landless households in exchange for their participation in
livelihood trainings and food-for-work activities to help rebuild critical community assets in
Balochistan and Sindh provinces. (USAID, 2021)
Partners
Planning Commission
UNDP
2030 Agenda
Government of Pakistan
28. 28
Government of Punjab
Government of Sindh
Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Government of Balochistan
Government of Gilgit-Baltistan
Azad Jammu & Kashmir Wing
SDGs Pakistan
Federal SDGs Support Unit
Punjab SDGs Support Unit
Sindh SDGs Support Unit
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa SDGs Support Unit
Balochistan SDGs Support Unit
Government of Gilgit-Baltistan
Azad Jammu & Kashmir Wing
Contributors
Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO),
International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD),
United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF),
World Food Programme (WFP) and
World Health Organization (WHO)
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
Ministry of Planning Development & Special Initiatives (MoP&SI)
Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP)
What is Being Done:
In Pakistan, there are several community-driven efforts to fight hunger and, more specifically,
stunting. These groups have been able to provide nutrient supplements to more than 700,000
Pakistanis experiencing undernutrition or malnutrition.
In 2020, the Food for Peace (FFP) program, a division of USAID, has provided $2 million to UNICEF
for nutrition services for children under the ageof fivewho experience severe acute malnutrition
in Pakistan. This number is much less than in previous years. In 2019, FFP provided $18 million to
UNICEF and in 2018, the figure was more than $21 million.
In 2018, the Pakistani government pledged to achieve self-sufficiency in food and set a goal of
eliminating hunger in the country by 2030. To achieve this goal, the government has put an
emphasis on crop diversification, water management and “climate-smart” farming to reduce the
catastrophic impacts of natural disasters on food security.
29. 29
Pakistan is a country that has experienced political and economic turmoil for decades. These
conditions coupled with the impacts of natural disasters have made undernutrition and
malnutrition a huge concern in the country. While over the past several years the country has
implemented initiatives to improve the food situation, the challenges surrounding food security
remain and hunger in Pakistan remain a major issue.
Challenges to the progress:
The Pandemic:
However, this progress is, at present, hinder by the on-going pandemic, which may create more
hunger and reverse the stunting progress. Pakistanunder SDG 2 is more focused on stunting than
malnourishment overall, which is troubling in the present pandemic as it is likely to create global
food supply issue, as most of the resources are diverted to fighting the pandemic. (IIPS, 2021)
Economy and Finance:
Other than that, the country has a troubled economy in which finding funding for many of its
initiatives is hard. Pakistan has low economic growth and foreign investors stay off the industries
of the country because of its economic conditions. The government, on the other hand, is more
focused on SDG 1, no poverty, and SDG 8, and second SDG is either largely ignored or considered
a part of poverty alleviation schemes. (IIPS, 2021)
Knowledge and Technology Gaps:
Furthermore, the knowledge and technology gap make it hard for the country to produce local
solutions for its problems. Most of the country’s policies are devised on the reliance on
development sector organizations, which employ non-local solutions. What worked in Sri Lanka
and India will not necessarily work in Pakistan. The government staff often relies on the
development sector for data gathering and processing facilities.Thegovernance structures in the
country are weak so many successful foreign models may not even work here. (IIPS, 2021)
Data availability and quality:
Likewise,the country works mostly on guesstimates and there have been questions raised on the
authenticity of many data gathering exercises.Where reliable stats are available,qualitative data
on the subject matter is missing. Best policies are evidence-based and in an environment where
either data is missing or questioned such policies are hard to devise. (IIPS, 2021)18
30. 30
Recommendation:
The world is still a far away from achieving Zero Hunger by 2030. If current trends continue, the
number of people suffering from hunger will exceed 840 million by 2030.
With over a quarter of a billion people possibly on the edge of hunger, immediate action is
required to deliver food and humanitarian aid to the most vulnerable regions.
Simultaneously, a fundamental shift in the global food and agricultural systems is required
because we are to feed the more than 690 million people who are hungry now – as well as the
additional 2 billion people the globe will have by 2050. Increasing agricultural productivity and
long-term food production are critical for mitigating the dangers of hunger.
Conclusion
Hunger is the world's biggest cause of death. Our earth has given us with vast resources, but
inequality in access and poor management have resulted in millions of people being hungry. We
can feed the whole world's population and ensure that no one ever goes hungry again if we
encourage agricultural production with advanced technologies and efficient allocation systems.
If we were really to nourish today's 815 million hungry people, as well as the additional 2 billion
people expected by 2050, the global food and agricultural system must need significant change.
In a nutshell, Pakistan’s progress on SDG 2 is not as good as its performance in SDG one and eight.
Only two provinces have passed laws related to it and Pakistan is a huge territory, therefore,
progress in legislation is insignificant. In terms of policies, the Federal government has produced
two policies related to it, but they don’t apply to the provinces. Though stunting in the country
has reduced, the effects of Covid-19 can reverse this progress. Finally, small steps like soup
kitchen are welcomed, but with the challenging environment in the country, it is hard to say how
successful they have been.
31. 31
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