Central African Republic has been ranked the Hungriest country in not just Africa, but the whole world in general. The country topped an annual world hunger index on Tuesday as aid agencies warned that climate change was making it increasingly hard to feed the world.
Produced annually by Concern Worldwide, the Global Hunger Index examines the available data for hunger levels around the world.
Aid agency Concern Worldwide, which co-compiles the Global Hunger Index, said progress towards a 2030 zero hunger target agreed by world leaders was “under threat or is being reversed”.
Hunger levels in CAR, driven by violence since 2013, are “extremely alarming”, while levels in Chad, Madagascar, Yemen, and Zambia are “alarming”, according to the index released on the eve of World Food Day.
Chad has the third-worst GHI score in the world and the second worst in Africa according to this year’s ranking; at 44.2, it is considered alarming. Chad’s child mortality rate is 12.3 percent, the second-highest rate in this report. Chad ranks 186th out of 189 countries in the Human Development Index, with only South Sudan, the Central African Republic, and Niger ranking worse.
Another 20 of the 117 countries ranked in the index had “serious” hunger levels.
The report also revealed that Global hunger levels have risen in the last 3 years, from 785 million in 2015 to 822 million in 2018.
Declining poverty and increased funding for nutrition initiatives have helped reduce global hunger since 2000, but there was still a long way to go, the report said.
Concern CEO Dominic MacSorley said about 45 countries were unlikely to achieve low levels of hunger by 2030.
“Conflict, inequality, and the effects of climate change have all contributed to persistently high levels of hunger and food insecurity around the world,” he said.
Overall, the 2019 GHI scores indicate that global hunger is moving from serious to moderate, reflecting a 31% decline in global hunger since 2000. However, multiple countries have higher hunger levels in 2019 than they did in 2010. Conflict, inequality, and the effects of climate change are all contributors to these instances of high levels. Here, according to the 2019 Global Hunger Index, are the current top 20 hungriest countries in Africa.
Africa Rank | Country | Score
20. Nigeria, 27.9
19. Tanzania, 28.6
18. Mozambique, 28.8
17. Ethiopia 28.9
16. Rwanda, 29.1
15. Guinea-Bissau, 29.6
14. Angola, 29.8
14. Niger, 30.2
13. Sierra Leone, 30.4
12. Uganda, 30.6
10. Djibouti, 30.9
9. Congo, Rep. 31.0
8. Sudan, 32.8
7. Zimbabwe, 34.4
6. Haiti, 34.7
5. Liberia, 34.9
4. Zambia, 38.1
4. Madagascar, 41.5
2. Chad, 44.2
1. Central African Republic 53.6
