Regional Overview of Food Security and Nutrition in Europe and Central Asia 2019: Structural Transformations of Agriculture for Improved Food Security, Nutrition and Environment

1) an in-depth situation analysis of Sustainable Development Goal 2 Target 2.1 (to end hunger and ensure access to food by all) and Target 2.2 (to end all forms of malnutrition), as well as the state of micronutrient deficiencies; 2) an analysis of the drivers and determinants of food security and nutrition; and 3) a special look at the structural transformations of agriculture, food systems and nutrition.

This edition introduces analysis on the prevalence of moderate or severe food insecurity, based on the Food Insecurity Experience Scale surveys. The new estimates show that the prevalence of food insecurity at the moderate or severe level can be quite high, and that the prevalence is non-trivial even in many relatively high-income countries in the ECA region. Malnutrition is present to varying degrees in all countries in the region, and the prevalence of overweight and obesity is alarmingly high and increasing.

Two important drivers of food insecurity and malnutrition are discussed: socio-economic inequalities and government expenditures on agriculture. The report stresses the importance of considering socio-economic inequalities in the design of food and nutrition policies, programmes and interventions, and it finds that most countries in the region may be under-investing in agriculture relative to the sector’s importance in the economy and to food security and nutrition.