Renewed Call for Private Sector Investments to End Hunger

Extreme poverty and hunger are evil twins. But the fight against them grew stronger last week when Global Citizen, an organization dedicated to ending extreme poverty, brought the issue of hunger into the conversation at its high-level Global Citizen NOW event. One of its main sessions addressed the need for sustainable food systems transformation to feed the poor.

The panel, Seeding the Future, highlighted the concrete action that corporate leaders can take to help achieve SDG 2 by joining the Zero Hunger Private Sector Pledge. President of the PepsiCo Foundation and Global Head of Philanthropy at PepsiCo, C.D. Glin, notably discussed how the company is implementing its commitment under the Zero Hunger Private Sector Pledge.

This renewed the call for more private sector investments to end hunger.

An Escalating Food Crisis

The world is not on track to achieve SDG 2. According to the latest estimates, 828 million people are facing hunger everyday – 150 million more than before the COVID-19 pandemic. Reversing this trend will require more funding.

Evidence from Ceres2030, the Center for Development Research (ZEF), and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) agree that donors must spend an additional 14 billion dollars per year to end hunger sustainably, effectively doubling current public spending.

This scale of resources is unlikely to materialize. Caught between tighter fiscal constraints and increased expenditures in the aftermath of the pandemic and the invasion of Ukraine, donor governments must also address a challenging economic environment, political instability, and the effects of climate change.

Financing from other sources, including the private sector, must be mobilized.

Joining the Zero Hunger Private Sector Pledge

This is why the Zero Hunger Private Sector Pledge was launched at the 2021 United Nations Food Systems Summit, recognising the role that the private sector can and must play to ensure food security and nutrition for all.

The Zero Hunger Private Sector Pledge calls on companies to make financial commitments that complement thosefrom donors, governments, and international organizations, thus contributing towards achieving SDG 2.

To date, 44 companies have pledged 508 million dollars in 47 countries. This is promising, but much more is needed. For 2023, our ambition is to reach a hundred companies pledging a billion dollars in all ninety priority countries.

Our call to action for companies is clear: join the Zero Hunger Private Sector Pledge NOW.

Learn more about How to Pledge, Pledge Now or contact the Pledge Coordinator.