Global Food Policy Report

• 27 Apr 2019

It is released by the Washington DC-based International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).

• Rural revitalization is the theme for 2019.

Key Observation

• Marked by the deepening cycle of hunger and malnutrition, poverty, limited economic opportunities, and environmental degradation, rural areas continue to be in a state of crisis in many parts of the world.
• This crisis can slow the progress toward achieving the Sustainable Development Goals and global climate targets.
• Rural population account for 45.3% of the world’s total population and at least 70% of the world’s population remains extremely poor.
• The rural population suffers from rapid population growth rates, inadequate job and enterprise creation, poor infrastructure, scarce financial services.
• In addition, rural communities bear the brunt of climate change impacts.
• Nearly 50% of rural youth all over the world do not have any formal job – they are either unemployed or under-employed.
• Rural revitalization is important to end hunger and malnutrition.
• The Changing consumption patterns—driven largely by urbanization, demographic transitions, increasing income, and growing integration of food supply chains and food systems in India — offer new opportunities for entrepreneurship and employment in rural areas.

Challenges

• India is continuously facing the challenge of climate change, risks on land degradation, deterioration of soil quality, and loss of biodiversity have potentially slowed the rural transformation.

Indian Measures to Boosts Rural Economy

• Giving Minimum Support Prices by the government for major crops equal to at least 1.5 times their production costs.
• India plans to upgrade 22,000 rural haats (local informal markets) to Gramin Agricultural Markets (GrAMs), and upgrade agri-marketing infrastructure