Global Hunger Index does not really measure hunger: ICMR

New Delhi, October 18

A new study published in the Indian Journal of Medical Research, the Indian Council of Medical Research publication, on Tuesday said the Global Hunger Index did not really measure hunger and was not a true indicator of the same.

The ICMR paper said the indicators of undernourishment, stunting, wasting and child mortality, which the Global Hunger Index uses, do not measure hunger per se as these are not the manifestations of hunger alone.

“Many of the measures that are used to evolve an index that measures hunger are probably contextual. The GHI exaggerates the measure of hunger, lacks statistical vigour, has a problem of multiple counts, and gives higher representation to under-five children. Undernourishment, stunting, wasting and child mortality are not the consequences of hunger alone, as these manifestations are seen among the relatively rich as well,’ the ICMR study, titled, “Global Hunger Index does not really measure hunger – An Indian perspective”, said.

It cited the National Family Health Survey 2015-16 and the National Sample Survey Organisation to say that the measured proportions of undernourishment, stunted and wasted children in the two wealth quintiles (4th and 5th) were 7.3, 25.7 and 18.6 per cent, respectively, while the under-five mortality per 1000 live births was 25.8.

“In the NFHS-4 data (2015-16), stunting (27.1-38.2%) and wasting (14.2-20.4%) were significantly prevalent among children of normal body mass index and overweight mothers. The inclusion of stunting as an indicator in GHI has implicit assumption that those who are hungry are likely to be short-statured. This can be contested since the child’s height is dependent on both maternal and paternal stature,” the study authors said.

They said that in India, stunting has been declining rapidly even among the underprivileged.

“It would not be correct to relate stunting in under-five children with hunger alone. The inclusion of child mortality as an indicator under GHI has the underlying assumption that hunger is the major cause of such mortality. This is, however, not supported by the data on the cause of death for children under five years and thus it is questionable. India is one of the few countries where indirect data on hunger had been collected till 2009-2010, through surveys that asked a couple of questions relating to the intake of two square meals a day,” the ICMR publication said.

Global Hunger Index

Global Hunger Index 2022 jointly published by two NGOs – Concern Worldwide (Ireland) and Welthungerhilfe (Germany) ranksIndia at 107 among 121 countries, behind all SouthAsian countries except Afghanistan.