Undernourishment in dveloping nations in Asia: investigating the macroeconomic links

Abstract

Introduction Food security is defined as ‘a situation that exists when all people, at all times, have physical, social and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life’ (FAO, 2002). The major dimensions of food security include, food availability, accessibility and utilization, and lack of which, individually or collectively, could lead to a ‘food insecure’ society. The specific objective of this study was to examine empirically the relationship between a set of key macroeconomic indicators on prevalence of undernourishment in the Asian region – the most populous region in the world and possesses the highest undernourished population, and about two-thirds of the world’s hungry live in Asia.