Sustainable Development Goal 2

The Sustainable Development Goal 2 (also called SDG 2 or Global Goal 2) wants to end hunger around the world. It is one of 17 important goals set by the United Nations in 2015. The goal is to make sure everyone has enough good food to eat and to help farms grow food in ways that are good for the Earth. This includes making food safe and healthy for everyone.

In 2023, many people still did not have enough to eat. Some places, like South Sudan, Somalia, Yemen, and Nigeria, were especially hard hit. Hunger can make people very sick and keep children from growing properly.

SDG 2 has many parts to help reach its goal. It wants to stop people from going hungry, make sure they get healthy food, help farms grow more food, and protect plants and animals that people use for food. It also wants to make rules about trading food fairer so everyone can get what they need.

Even though there was some progress, many problems still make it hard to end hunger. Things like bad weather, diseases that hurt crops, and big health problems like the COVID-19 pandemic have made it harder for people to get enough food.

Right now, the world is not moving fast enough to end hunger by 2030. Many people, especially in Africa, still struggle to get enough food each day. Everyone needs to work together to make sure no one goes to bed hungry.

Background

In September 2015, leaders from around the world agreed on a plan called the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. This plan has 17 big goals to help make the world better for everyone. One of these goals, Goal 2, is to make sure no one goes hungry.

Goal 2 wants to end all hunger and make sure everyone, especially children, has enough food every year by 2030. Not having enough food can make it hard for children to grow and learn, and it can make people sick. To reach this goal, we need better ways of growing food to produce more and reduce waste.

A report from 2013 said that besides ending poverty, it’s important to eliminate hunger and poor nutrition sooner, by 2025. This idea came from looking at what worked in countries like China, Vietnam, Brazil, and Thailand. There are three main ways to achieve this: improving farming, giving support and care to families, or using a mix of both methods.

Targets, indicators and progress

Further information: List of SDG targets and indicators

The United Nations set 8 targets and 13 indicators for Sustainable Development Goal 2 to end hunger. Some targets need to be met by 2030, one by 2020, and three have no specific years. Each target has indicators to measure progress. The targets include ending hunger, stopping malnutrition, improving agricultural productivity, creating sustainable food systems, protecting plant and animal diversity, and encouraging better investments, research, and technology in farming.

Target 2.1: Universal access to safe and nutritious food

This target aims to end hunger and make sure everyone has safe and nutritious food by 2030, especially helping poor and vulnerable people.

It has two indicators:

• Indicator 2.1.1: How many people are not getting enough food.
• Indicator 2.1.2: How many people are worried about not having enough food.

Food insecurity means people don't always have enough safe and good food to stay healthy. The UN's FAO uses how many people are not getting enough food to measure hunger.

Target 2.2: End all forms of malnutrition

This target wants to stop all kinds of malnutrition by 2030. This includes helping children under five grow properly and making sure girls, pregnant women, nursing mothers, and older people get the food they need.

It has two indicators:

• Indicator 2.2.1: How many children are too short for their age.
• Indicator 2.2.2: How many children are too thin or too heavy for their age.

Being too short for their age can make it hard for children to grow and learn well. Many children in Africa, Asia, and Latin America are affected.

Target 2.3: Double the productivity and incomes of small-scale food producers

This target helps small farmers and fishers, especially women and local communities, grow more food and earn more money by 2030. This includes giving them better land, tools, and chances to sell their food.

It has two indicators:

• Indicator 2.3.1: How much food small farmers produce for each worker.
• Indicator 2.3.2: How much money small farmers earn, looking at both men and women.

Target 2.4: Sustainable food production and resilient agricultural practices

This target wants farming to be better for the planet and able to handle problems like droughts and floods by 2030. It helps keep nature healthy and improve soil.

It has one indicator:

• Indicator 2.4.1: How much farmland is used in a way that is good for the environment.

Target 2.5: Maintain the genetic diversity in food production

This target aims to protect different kinds of plants and animals used for food by 2020. This helps make sure we have many types of food even if some get sick or the climate changes a lot.

It has two indicators:

• Indicator 2.5.1: How many different plants and animals for food are saved in special places.
• Indicator 2.5.2: How many local animal types are at risk of disappearing.

Target 2.a: Invest in rural infrastructure, agricultural research, technology and gene banks

This target encourages countries to put money into farming, research, and special banks that save seeds and animals. This helps farmers grow more food.

It has two indicators:

• Indicator 2.a.1: How much money governments spend on farming compared to how important farming is to the country's money.
• Indicator 2.a.2: How much money countries give to help farming in other places.

Target 2.b.: Prevent agricultural trade restrictions, market distortions and export subsidies

This target wants countries to stop putting extra rules or giving money to help their own farmers sell more, because this can hurt farmers in other countries and make food prices change a lot.

It has two indicators:

• Indicator 2.b.1: How much money governments give to help their farmers.
• Indicator 2.b.2: How much money countries give to help their farmers sell products abroad.

Target 2.c: Ensure stable food commodity markets and timely access to information

This target is about making sure food prices don't jump up and down too much and that everyone can find out about food prices and supplies quickly. This helps keep food available and prices fair.

It has one indicator: Indicator 2.c.1 measures how much food prices change over time.

The G20 Agricultural Market Information System (AMIS) gives regular updates on food prices.

Custodian agencies

Different groups watch over the progress of these targets:

• For Targets 2.1, 2.3, and 2.5, and some others: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
• For some targets about children: United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), World Health Organization (WHO)
• For farming and nature: United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and FAO
• For money and trade: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO)

Tools

The Global Hunger Index is a tool that helps measure and track hunger around the world, in different regions, and in individual countries.

The FAO Food Price Index shows how the prices of food change each month around the world.

Monitoring progress

We have made progress in fighting hunger, but many people still don't have enough to eat. In 2017, groups like the French UN mission, Action Against Hunger, Save The Children, and Global Citizen talked about ways to help end hunger.

Only a few countries were doing well enough to stop hunger by 2030. Many places haven’t improved much. To help everyone, leaders need to care more and take steps to support children and people in poor areas.

Challenges

Main article: Sustainable Development Goals § Challenges

Reaching zero hunger has been hard, especially between 2019 and 2022. Big events like a large locust problem in Eastern Africa, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the Russian invasion of Ukraine made it tougher to meet this goal. These events caused trouble with food supplies, making it harder for families, especially children, to get enough healthy food.

The COVID-19 pandemic alone meant many people did not have enough food. It also made it harder for farmers to grow and send food around the world, adding stress to families who were already having a difficult time. This situation added extra challenges for young children trying to grow healthily.

Criticism

Researchers from Wageningen University say the goals to end hunger don’t think enough about how food is made and moved. They note that while the goals try to solve problems like not getting enough vitamins, they don’t talk about health problems from eating too much salt, fat, and sugar. The goals mention farming that helps the environment, but they don’t clearly say what that means. These researchers think the ways we measure progress aren’t always right, making it hard to see how everything connects from growing food to eating it.

Links with other SDGs

The SDGs are all connected. Working on one goal can help others.

Climate change and natural disasters can affect food security. Good disaster risk management, climate change adaptation, and mitigation help us grow more food and keep it safe. Targets 2.4 and 2.5 are about taking care of our environment.

Organizations and programmes

Many groups and programs work to help people have enough healthy food. Some important ones are the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), and the World Food Programme (WFP). Other groups include the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the World Bank, and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

There are also many non-profit groups helping with hunger, such as Action Against Hunger, Feeding America, and The Hunger Project (THP). These groups work together to support communities and fight malnutrition around the world.