The 1996 declaration of the World Food Summit states: “Everyone to have access to safe and nutritious food, consistent with the right to adequate food and the fundamental right of everyone to be free from hunger”. The right to food is also recognised in the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights and is enshrined in the 1966 International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. Accordingly, combatting hunger and malnutrition is more than a moral duty but a legally binding part of national law under human rights obligation.

Data from studies conducted on global interventions to prevent hunger and malnutrition show that the world appears to be losing the battle. The increase in nutrient deficiencies globally is a cause of great concern and indicates that people are not getting sufficient minerals and vitamins from their diets. Iron, iodine, folate, vitamin A, and zinc deficiencies are the most widespread micronutrient deficiencies. They are common contributors to poor growth, intellectual impairments, perinatal complications, and increased risk of morbidity and mortality.

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (2030 Agenda) aim to achieve a world free of hunger and malnutrition in all its forms, and to use data and global partnerships to realise the goals. Goal 17 encourages “the global partnership for sustainable development, complemented by the use of multi-stakeholder partnerships” to implement the 2030 Agenda.

The World Health Organization (WHO) defines malnutrition as undernutrition (wasting, stunting, underweight), inadequate vitamins or minerals, overweight, obesity, and diet-related non-communicable diseases. Githanga et al. (2017) state that an estimated 40% of children in sub-Saharan Africa are affected by stunting, which is the most prevalent form of malnutrition, and an estimated 69-82% of malnutrition cases are not properly treated.

Iron deficiency is the most extensive nutritional disorder in developing countries, with pregnant women and children being at greatest risk of deficiencies. Pregnancy and childhood development increase the demand for specific minerals and vitamins. It is also the only nutrient deficiency that is significantly prevalent in industrialised countries.

Around 42% of the world’s children have anaemia. The rate is lowest in the higher-income country regions of North America (9%), and moderately higher in Europe’s low to middle income countries such as Central Asia (22%), East Asia and the Pacific (26%). The rate of childhood anaemia is high across South Asia (55%) and sub-Saharan Africa (60%).

Most forms of malnutrition are easy to identify at an early age, but micronutrient deficiency, or ‘hidden hunger’, is different and harder to detect. Hidden hunger, commonly known as a chronic lack of essential minerals and vitamins, is when children seem to be well fed but silently suffer from a deficiency of key micronutrients in their diets. Forty-five percent of all deaths of children under the age of six years are attributed to under nutrition (the hidden hunger syndrome), particularly in the low- and middle-income countries. Hidden hunger compromises the physical and cognitive capacity building of millions, contributing to the deaths of over one million children annually.