Food crisis looms in Bangladesh

Food crises are mainly caused by natural disasters, wars, economic instability, population growth and government policies. It essentially disrupts food production, supply and availability. Currently, the food problem is at the top of the global problems. In fact, the food problem is no longer a problem. It is expected to become a crisis in the coming years. Meanwhile, the number of people facing the food crisis in the last eight months of the year is likely to increase compared to the first four months of the year in our country. According to that, 1 crore 60 lakh people of the country are going to face a major food crisis by next December. Sixteen (16) lakh children are going to face extreme malnutrition at this time.

Climate-related shocks-particularly the floods-harm livelihoods; Market volatility and inflation have reduced the purchasing power of low-income people; In addition, humanitarian aid funding has decreased even as the needs of the Rohingya have increased-emerging as a root cause of food insecurity.

The people of the country's disaster-prone districts are going to fall into this crisis. The Food Planning and Distribution Unit (FPMU) of the Ministry of Food and three organizations of the United Nations have published this information after analyzing the food security and nutritional status of more than 9 crore 66 lakh people in 36 districts of the country including Rohingya camps. Although there is no major risk to Bangladesh's food security, it is quite difficult to meet the country's demand by importing food all the time. Even in countries known for producing food and consumer goods, food production is declining. The supply chain is being disrupted. The price has increased. Food crisis and famine are not the same thing.

Climate-related shocks-particularly the floods-harm livelihoods; Market volatility and inflation have reduced the purchasing power of low-income people; In addition, humanitarian aid funding has decreased even as the needs of the Rohingya have increased-emerging as a root cause of food insecurity. Meanwhile, the recently released report assessed food shortages, malnutrition and vulnerable populations in five phases.

There are Stage 1 : Minimal or Normal, Stage 2 : Stressed, Stage 3 : Crisis, Stage 4 : Emergency and Stage 5 : Famine. It has been said that the food security situation of more than 9 crore 66 lakh people living in 36 districts of the country has been analyzed. This year no stage-5 i.e. famine has been seen in any district, nor is there any danger of it.

The data on food insecurity and malnutrition is not comforting to anyone. Governments, development partners, and private entrepreneurs all have to take responsibility from their respective places to reduce food insecurity and malnutrition. The government should take effective initiatives to reduce poverty and inequality. Rising poverty rates, declines in investment and employment, inflationary pressures - all have forced a large section of citizens to live on subsistence. Economic downturns, climate disasters, lack of funds, lack of food diversity - analysis of these factors shows that the kind of planning and management needed to deal with this situation is sorely lacking in the policy-making space. Food is not limited to hunger.

Meanwhile, by the year 2050, the world's population is expected to increase to 9.3 billion. On the other hand, according to the calculations of the World Food and Agriculture Organization, at least 60 percent more food must be produced to feed this large population in the future. However, there are real concerns about whether it will be possible to increase food production to such a large extent or not. In that case, the future world may face severe food shortages. On the other hand, conventional farming systems have limitations in meeting future food needs. Malnutrition, poverty and food prices are increasing at an alarming rate worldwide due to the global crisis. Corona crisis and Ukraine-Russia war are mainly responsible for this crisis. The main objective of overcoming the global food crisis is to raise awareness against hunger, malnutrition and poverty, to focus on improving agriculture, to encourage agricultural production, to encourage developing countries to receive assistance in economic and technological fields, rural people, especially women and backwardness. Encouraging human contribution and spreading the richness of technology to the world.

To address the food crisis, Bangladesh should increase the use of modern technologies in agriculture, encourage farmers with subsidies, reduce the use of agricultural land for settlements, prevent food wastage, and take steps to combat climate change. In addition, there is a need to increase domestic production, procure food from alternative sources and increase international cooperation to address the global food crisis.