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The Hunger Project Online Briefing Program  THP in India - Empowering Women Panchayat Leaders  Page 3 of  23

Central Plan

In Unit 2, we explored the persistence of hunger in India. The following section looks again at the most critical points. Please revisit Unit 2 for more details.

• A greater percentage of hungry people live in South Asia, than in any other region in the world. Over 400 million people in the region go hungry every day.

• Hunger in South Asia persists not because of famine or natural disaster.

• Chronic hunger persists because people lack opportunity - to earn enough money, to be educated and gain skills, to meet basic health needs and to have a voice in the decisions that affect their lives and their communities.

India is home to more than 1 billion people.  Its rural villages are where nearly 3/4 of the population, roughly 72 million people, live. India has the greatest percentage of hungry people in the world. For every 1,000 children that are born, 69 die before they reach age 1. For every 100,000 births, 410 women die in childbirth. India has the second highest rates of malnutrition in the world, just after Bangladesh. 1/3 of all babies born are underweight.  For children under age 5, 53% are underweight and malnourished.

The persistence of malnutrition and hunger is intricately linked to the poor health and nutrition of women throughout their lives. In Unit 4, we examine this link in depth. Social conditions in India mean that women are second class citizens, subjugated from birth to death. Women and girls eat last and least in the family, receive less health care than their brothers, are less educated and are overworked. They have poor nutrition and have little additional care when they are pregnant.

• 60% of women of childbearing age in South Asia are themselves malnourished. Yet, women are the principal providers of nourishment to children, both before birth and after birth.

• Women suffer from mineral deficiencies and deficiencies in iodine, iron, and Vitamin A. When they are pregnant, they gain only half of the weight necessary for a healthy birth.

• The social conditions that keep women subjugated, and suppress their contributions, must be addressed for hunger and poverty to end.

Today

The Hunger Project Online Briefing Program  THP in India - Empowering Women Panchayat Leaders  Page 3 of  23

Central Plan