Analyzing the Global Hunger Index and India's Low Ranking

The Global Hunger Index: A Comprehensive Overview

The Global Hunger Index (GHI) serves as an essential tool for evaluating and monitoring hunger across the globe. This index is developed by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), in collaboration with Concern Worldwide and Welthungerhilfe. The GHI integrates four significant indicators to assess hunger:

• Undernourishment: This indicator measures the percentage of the population that does not receive adequate caloric intake necessary to fulfill their dietary energy requirements.
• Child Stunting: This reflects the percentage of children under five years old who experience low height-for-age, indicating chronic undernutrition.
• Child Wasting: This assesses the proportion of children under the age of five with low weight-for-height, which signifies acute undernutrition.
• Child Mortality: This represents the mortality rate among children under five, which can be affected by malnutrition.

These indicators are critical for understanding the global, regional, and national landscape of hunger and malnutrition. Data collection for these indicators is conducted through various surveys, including national assessments like India’s National Family Health Survey (NFHS).

India's Ranking in the Global Hunger Index

India’s position in the GHI has been notably low, currently ranking 111 out of 125 countries. Several factors contribute to this concerning ranking, particularly issues surrounding undernourishment and child malnutrition. However, the Indian government has contested this ranking, primarily citing discrepancies in data sources and methodologies, especially regarding child wasting.

While India utilizes data from its Poshan Tracker portal, the GHI relies on the National Family Health Survey 5, which aims for uniformity across participating countries. This difference has sparked debate over the accuracy and reliability of the GHI findings.

Government's Response to the GHI 2023 Report

Key points from the Indian government’s response to the GHI 2023 report include:

• Methodological Concerns: The Ministry of Women and Child Development criticized the GHI 2023 report, citing serious methodological flaws and declaring it an unreliable measure of hunger.
• Child Health Focus: The ministry argued that three out of the four indicators in the GHI disproportionately focus on child health, rendering the index unrepresentative of the entire population.
• Proportion of Undernourished (PoU) Critique: The PoU, a critical GHI indicator, is based on a limited sample size of 3,000 through an opinion poll, raising questions about its precision.
• Child Wasting Statistics: The ministry highlighted inconsistencies in child wasting data, asserting their figures remain consistently below 7.2%, contrasting sharply with the GHI's reported 18.7%.
• Child Mortality: The ministry contended that there is insufficient evidence to directly correlate child mortality with hunger, challenging another key GHI indicator.

In conclusion, the Global Hunger Index offers a multifaceted view of hunger through various indicators. India's low ranking is largely attributed to factors such as undernourishment and child malnutrition, but ongoing disputes regarding methodology and data sources continue to shape the dialogue.