One year on from the Nutrition for Growth (N4G) summit, SUN CSN launches a social accountability campaign to hold stakeholders to account for promises made. The SUN Civil Society Network, along with the support of network members and global partners, want to see that the bold commitments we all made for nutrition become a reality! […]
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The system is broken, now what? Five things we can do to make our advocacy demands a reality.
This September 2022, our members gathered again for a Virtual Assembly, the second of its kind. The objective was to agree upon the practical steps to deliver on a set of advocacy demands that emerged through a consultative process after our first virtual assembly. With the overarching goal to mitigate the impact of ongoing and […]
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Get Involved with the Latest CS Network Assembly!
Our first ever network-wide Virtual Assembly took place in May against the backdrop of ongoing global crises, which have seen food prices rise and access to adequate nutrition further diminished. Together, CSN members discussed how communities have been impacted and what we needed to change in the global food system to mitigate the impact of […]
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Training on Enhancing Capacities on Nutrition-Sensitive Programming
November 15-16th 2022 (virtual) 21 – 25th November 2022 (in-person) IIRR Yen Center, Silang, Cavite, Philippines Application deadline: 27th September Malnutrition and hunger continue to afflict children and adults alike across the world, affecting their growth, development, and productivity. If unaddressed, undernutrition has serious short and long-term consequences for a child’s development. Access to, and […]
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Three things we learnt from the first Civil Society Network assembly
This week saw over 60 members of the SUN Movement’s Civil Society Network (CSN) come together from countries all around the globe in the first ever network-wide assembly to discuss experiences and solutions surrounding the current global food crisis and to create tangible advocacy demands as a network. The discussion was full of ideas and […]
ReadThe SUN CSN to host its first network-wide assembly on global crises
Summary The Civil Society Network Secretariat (CSNS) plans to organise a series of meetings with CSN Members to come together and share experiences and perspectives on how the global commodity price increases are impacting nutrition in different contexts. The event on May 25th will be offered as the first of an ongoing series of global […]
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SUN CSA Vietnam goes digital! How AI technology is helping to fight Code violators in Vietnam.
Our Civil Society Alliance in Vietnam, led by Alive & Thrive, and thanks to FHI Solutions’ Innovation Incubator, have teamed up with artificial intelligence (AI) company Hekate. Their aim? To try and end exploitative marketing of commercial milk formula and related products within the scope of the BMS code, on the digital frontline. Hekate, a […]
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Ukraine conflict highlights the fragility of the global food system and will have damaging impact on nutrition of the most vulnerable, warns SUN Movement’s Civil Society Network.
Members of the SUN Movement’s Civil Society Network are already reporting food shortages and escalation in prices due to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, which will have knock-on effects on the state of nutrition globally. The Russian Federation and Ukraine are among the most important producers of agricultural commodities in the world. Organisations such as […]
ReadLife under the Taliban: Obstacles faced in Afghanistan
Part 4: Being a child in Afghanistan Written by Zuhra Dadgar-Shafiq, Programme Director and Co-Founder of Action for Development who provide vital health and education services in Afghanistan to the most marginalized and vulnerable individuals through cost-effective, cascade-model projects that allow for community participation and empowerment. Afghanistan has been struggling with conflict for over 40 years. The situation […]
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Life under the Taliban: Obstacles faced in Afghanistan
Part 3: Rising food prices Written by Zuhra Dadgar-Shafiq, Programme Director and Co-Founder of Action for Development who provide vital health and education services in Afghanistan to the most marginalized and vulnerable individuals through cost-effective, cascade-model projects that allow for community participation and empowerment. Afghanistan has been struggling with conflict for over 40 years. The […]
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Part 3: Rising food prices
Written by Zuhra Dadgar-Shafiq, Programme Director and Co-Founder of Action for Development who provide vital health and education services in Afghanistan to the most marginalized and vulnerable individuals through cost-effective, cascade-model projects that allow for community participation and empowerment.
Afghanistan has been struggling with conflict for over 40 years. The situation has recently been exacerbated due to the dire political context and the takeover of the Taliban resulting in social, economic and political instability in the country that has left many people in extremely poor conditions. Currently, it is expected that around 55% of the population (almost 20 million people) will be in food crisis emergency phase 3 and 4 . The WFP has confirmed that one in two people in Afghanistan do not have enough to eat at least once a day.
In addition to the ongoing protracted conflict, the climatic conditions add a burden to the agriculture sector that is suffering from limited investment and low productivity. The food crisis is on the rise caused by the extreme poverty conditions and extreme weather and climatic conditions. Poor pasture conditions and high food prices driven by drought have left over three million livestock at critical risk during winter and has already resulted in increased distress livestock sales. Climate change has caused declining precipitation, putting additional pressure on water resources already strained from population growth. In addition to the drought, more than 29,000 people in 13 provinces were affected by other natural disasters– mostly floods.
Wheat is the main food for most Afghans, comprising more than 70 percent of their diet. Low-quality rice is a poor, but sometimes necessary, substitute. However, prices for these main food items have more than tripled.
In addition, the average food basket cost had increased by 22 per cent between June and October 2021 alone due to conflict and covid. However, after the takeover of government the costs of immediate food items have increased enormously and are likely to increase even further with the current economic crisis, inflation and cash restrictions Afghanistan is facing. As a result, households will be less likely to purchase food, leading to a further increase in hunger and malnutrition.
The poverty previously was mainly in the rural areas, however, with the loss of jobs, women being unable to get employed, continue their businesses and education (women represent 50% of the population) and as most of them are widows, they are in immense need of support.
