Increasing the Resilience of the Food Systems
In Islamic States in Face of Future Food Crises
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OIC Malnourishment
The average number of undernourished people in OIC countries in 2015-2017 totaled 223.4
million.133 Undernourishment refers to the condition of people whose dietary energy
consumption is less than a defined, country-specific threshold. The threshold is assessed in
terms of the kilocalories required to perform light activities.134 Pakistan, Bangladesh, and
Nigeria ranked highest in undernourished populations, with 39.5million, 24.8million, and 21.5
million, respectively.135 The OIC accounted for 27.8% of the world’s average number of
undernourished people in 2015-2017. Undernourishment is primarily caused by conflict,
climatic extremes, and economic upheavals.136
Figure 11: Prevalence of Undernourishment in OIC Countries (percent) (3-year average)
2015-2017137
Source: FAO
Malnutrition, which is caused by imbalances in the intake of macro- and/or micro-nutrients, has
multiple forms. Food insecurity leads to undernutrition as well as overweight and obese
populations. These forms of malnutrition often coexist inmany countries. Coping with the stress
of food insecurity and costly nutritiousmeals contributes to a greater risk of obesity and excess
weight gain among food-insecure households. Inadequate food access also increases low-
133 FAOSTAT Online Database – Includes OIC countries where data is available and exact data figures are given.
134 FAO. (n.d.). An Introduction to the Basic Concepts of Food Security.Retrieved from
135 FAOSTAT Online Database.
136 FAO, IFAD, UNICEF, WFP andWHO. (2018). The State of Food Security and Nutrition in theWorld 2018: Building climate
resilience for food security and nutrition.Retrieved
137 FAOSTAT Online Database - This figure includes countries with available data and Prevalence of Undernourishment
(POU) of 2.5% or more in their population. The OIC Average is based on countries with available data and POU of equal to or
above 2.5%.
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