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"The Other Half" of Global Hunger and Poverty

2007-10

IDRC partner, the International Food Policy Research Institute, tackled issues of povery and hunger at an international conference in Beijing.

Nearly 200 nations around the globe made a bold commitment in 2000 to help the world’s poor.

Seeking to address the many dimensions of extreme poverty, these countries pledged to achieve a range of targets known as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by 2015.

Key among these goals is reducing by half the proportion of people living on less than $1 a day and suffering from hunger.

Nearly a decade after the pledge, East Asian countries have already met the poverty target and Southeast Asia, South Asia, and North Africa are on track to do the same. At the current pace of progress, all major developing regions, with the exception of sub-Saharan Africa, are expected to reach the goal.

These gains, however, have largely been limited to a few areas.

Most developing countries will not reach the MDG target on hunger and poverty, let alone those focusing on education, health, and human rights. According to World Bank projections, by 2015 700 million people worldwide will remain poor — many of them extremely poor — and 600 million will go hungry.

What will become of those left behind — “the other half?”

The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) tackled that question from October 17–19 when, with the support of IDRC and other collaborators, it brought together stakeholders from around the world to Beijing for the conference “Taking Action for the World’s Poor and Hungry People.”

The three-day discussion focused on whether the people who are poorest and most afflicted by hunger today face different social and economic challenges than those who have emerged from poverty in recent decades.

Participants looked at what steps are needed to improve the welfare of the world’s poorest and hungry people and addressed critical questions: 

• What are the key pathways out of extreme poverty and hunger? 
• Which strategies, policies, and interventions have been successful in eradicating extreme poverty and hunger? 
• How can existing actions to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger be accelerated or scaled up, and how can innovative solutions be designed and implemented for and with the poorest and hungry?

Leading up to the conference, IDRC contributed insight and expertise by identifying key issues and themes for the agenda.

At the conference IDRC chaired a plenary session, and members of the IDRC-sponsored Poverty and Economic Policy (PEP) Network participated in conference deliberations.

For more information about the conference   

Briefing Note on the IFPRI 2020 Conference

Publication: Taking Action for the World’s Poor and Hungry People: Synopsis of an International Consultation

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