Wiping Out Hunger in Africa Could Cost Just $5bn. What Are We Waiting For?

Ripping off the bandage of food aid and investing in self-sufficiency is the only way to fight malnutrition
Aug 28, 2019 11:00 AM ET
Children in North Kivu province, DRC. More than 250 million people in Africa – one in five – are malnourished. Photograph: Christian Jepsen/NRC.

Originally found on The Guardian

An independent study commissioned by the IFC (International Finance Corporation of the World Bank Group) and conducted by the University of Chicago estimates that from 2016 to 2031, AIF will generate $756m for the people of Rwanda. If this initiative was replicated just 75 times, we could achieve lasting food security in Africa.

Can we put a price on eradicating hunger? Based on the AIF example, it could cost as little as $5bn. To put this in context, official aid to Africa was $29bn in 2017, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Yet hunger is once again rising, wiping out almost a decade of progress. Millions remain in poverty and their prospects are poor

Food security in Africa is an achievable goal. Private companies need to step forward to invest in that brighter future. Together with local farmers and governments, we can eradicate hunger in Africa.

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