Washington, DC launch of the 2015 Global Hunger Index

Speakers:

• Maximo Torero, Markets, Trade, and Institutions division director, IFPRI
• Alex de Waal, executive director of the World Peace Foundation and research professor at Tufts University
• Connell Foley, director of Strategy, Advocacy and Learning at Concern Worldwide

Moderator:

• Katrin Park, Communications and Knowledge Management division director, IFPRI

While the developing world has made progress in reducing hunger since 2000, the 2015 Global Hunger Index (GHI) shows that the level of hunger in developing countries as a group has fallen by 27 percent. Yet the state of hunger in the world remains serious.

The Global Hunger Index is a multidimensional measure of hunger worldwide. This report's GHI scores are based on a new, improved formula that replaces the child underweight indicator of previous years with child stunting and child wasting.

Across regions and countries, GHI scores vary considerably. At this seminar, you will learn which countries and regions are home to the highest hunger scores. Levels of hunger are alarming or serious in 52 countries in the developing world.

Maximo Torero, IFPRI's director of the Markets, Trade, and Institutions division, will present findings from the report, including countries and regions where hunger levels are among the highest and countries that have made the greatest progress.

This latest report contains a chapter on armed conflict and hunger authored by Alex de Waal, who is executive director of the World Peace Foundation and a research professor at Tufts University. De Waal will reveal a historic, yet unheralded achievement regarding the elimination of calamitous famines—which are those that cause more than 1 million deaths—and discuss what made it possible.

Connell Foley, director of Strategy, Advocacy and Learning at Concern Worldwide, will present a case study from South Sudan, outlining the impact on food security and hunger on two different areas, one directly affected by armed conflict, the other much less directly affected.  The case study is based on interviews with populations targeted by Concern’s humanitarian programs.

By drawing attention to the countries and regions most severely affected by hunger, the Global Hunger Index, published by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) in collaboration with Concern Worldwide and Welthungerhilfe, aims to trigger action to reduce hunger.

Copies of the report will be available at the event.

*Light refreshments will be provided.