COVID-19 has acceptable backmost advancement towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), undermining decades of improvement efforts, according to a new study by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).  

"It's an alarming picture, successful which advancement connected galore SDG targets has been reversed, with a important interaction connected each aspects of sustainable improvement and making the accomplishment of the 2030 Agenda adjacent much challenging," said FAO Chief Statistician, Pietro Gennari. 

The analysis, Tracking progress on nutrient and agriculture SDG-related indicators, focuses connected 8 of the SDGs, which were adopted astatine a UN Summit successful New York successful 2015.  

Main findings 

According to the report, the COVID-19 pandemic mightiness person pushed an further 83 to 132 million people into chronic hunger successful 2020, making the people of ending hunger adjacent much distant. 

Around 14 percent of each food is mislaid on the proviso chain, before it adjacent reaches the consumer, which FAO considers “an unacceptably precocious proportion”. Progress has besides faltered towards maintaining works and carnal familial diverseness for nutrient and agriculture. 

Agricultural systems carnivore the brunt of economical losses owed to disasters, small-scale nutrient producers stay disadvantaged, and nutrient terms volatility has also increased, owed to the constraints placed by the pandemic and lockdowns.  

The study besides focuses connected gender, uncovering that women producers successful processing countries gain little than men adjacent erstwhile much productive; gender inequalities successful onshore rights are pervasive; and discriminatory laws and customs stay obstacles to women's tenure rights.  

Lastly, h2o accent remains alarmingly precocious successful galore regions, threatening advancement towards sustainable development. 

Progress and solutions 

FAO also points to respective areas successful which advancement is being made.  

The UN bureau highlights measures against illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, sustainable wood management, elimination of agricultural export subsidies, investment in agricultural productivity successful processing countries, and duty-free entree for processing and Least Developed Countries (LDCs).  

The new report coincides with this week's UN Food Systems Summit, which aims to rise planetary consciousness and spur actions to alteration nutrient systems, eradicate hunger, trim diet-related diseases and heal the planet.  

FAO is asking to scale up concern successful agriculture, more access to caller technologies, recognition services and accusation resources for farmers and support small-scale nutrient producers. 

The bureau besides supports the conservation of plant and carnal familial resources, measures to antagonistic nutrient terms volatility, and forestall perchance hazardous events from becoming full-blown disasters. 

It besides calls for much enactment to usage h2o efficiently, better interventions to trim nutrient losses, more extortion of ecosystems, progress connected the ineligible and applicable aspects of women's onshore rights and the sustainability of planetary fisheries. 

Lastly, the study makes an urgent telephone for much and amended data. 

"As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to unfold, and the satellite moves further disconnected way successful gathering the 2030 SDG deadline, timely and high-quality information are much indispensable than ever," Mr. Gennari said.