According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), as a result of the recent food crisis the number of chronically hungry people rose by 75 million in 2007, to reach a total of 923 million undernourished people. Today's reality appears to be even bleaker than the one in 2007. A recent statement of the World Bank considers the number of undernourished to now exceed 1 billion. Looking at this data in a disaggregated manner shows that 89% of the 923 million chronically hungry people live in Asia and the Pacific and Sub-Saharan Africa.
The prevalence of malnutrition in both urban and rural households has dramatically risen due to the increased cost of staple foods, such as grains and vegetable oils. The situation in South Asia is particularly bleak.
Specifically in South Asia, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) puts the number of hungry people in 2009 at 400 million, up by 100 million from the already unacceptable figure of pre-crises days. Moreover, of the 175 million children under 5 years of age living in the region, 45% are malnourished. By any measure this is the highest rate of malnutrition in the world, "eclipsing even Sub-Saharan Africa." This picture is even more worrisome as it is generally acknowledged that the GDP growth rates of South Asia are twice as high as those in Africa, which means that surpluses during pre-crises years have not been used properly to tackle malnutrition of children.
Quoting UNICEF, the rate of malnutrition and hunger, intensified by the continued effect of the food, fuel and financial crises, "violate the rights of every child to food, education, good health and protection". (UNICEF report, June 2009 A Matter of Magnitude The Impact of the Economic Crisis on Women and Children in South Asia)
According to Jean Ziegler's report, medical studies have pointed to the link between economic crisis, shortages in food and the incidence of noma.
Initiatives to Combat the Disease - WHO, national governments and non-governmental cooperation
In the African region, some progress has been achieved. It is essential to note the involvement of NGOs, charities and private individuals. These have been the driving force of the fight against noma, offering financial, logistical and medical support and assistance. To exemplify, the Noma Hospital in Sokoto, Nigeria (the only facility in Africa dedicated to the treatment of noma) has been established at the initiative and with the funding of "AWD- Stiftung Kinderhilfe' from Germany, the "Dutch Noma Foundation' and "Facing Africa' from England with the cooperation of Nigerian authorities. To date, activities in the fight against noma have been implemented mainly in Africa, " It appears that the lack of funds made it impossible to expand the programs on noma to the Asian and Latin American continents, despite the fact that both regions have documented cases of noma.
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