Amna Puri-Mirza
Research Expert covering the Middle East
Food security in the GCC - statistics & facts
The importance of food security can be broken down into four main components. First, the availability of food in sufficient quantities needs to be supplied through either domestic production or imports. Second, there needs to be adequate access to a nutritious diet and food for all individuals. Third, there needs to be appropriate utilization of food through a proper diet, clean water, sanitation, and healthcare for individuals. Lastly, there must be stability in access to food, where individuals are not threatened to scarcity or supply difficulties at any time.
In a global context, 11.3 percent of the world’s population experienced severe food insecurity in 2022, with the largest share of severely food insecure people located in Africa at 24 percent.
The outlook of every country in the Middle East and North Africa in terms of their food natural resources and resilience score is quite diverse. Turkey scores the highest in this index which indicates it can produce enough food domestically to fulfill the needs of its people. At the same time, the majority of Gulf Cooperation Council countries as well as Yemen were the lowest scorers of this index.
In a global context, 11.3 percent of the world’s population experienced severe food insecurity in 2022, with the largest share of severely food insecure people located in Africa at 24 percent.
Situation in the Middle East and North Africa
As of 2019, the Middle East and North Africa region had one of the world's lowest food loss scores. This indicates that the governments of the region have not addressed enough policies to combat food loss and waste. At the same time, they scored as low as North America in terms of food end-user waste.The outlook of every country in the Middle East and North Africa in terms of their food natural resources and resilience score is quite diverse. Turkey scores the highest in this index which indicates it can produce enough food domestically to fulfill the needs of its people. At the same time, the majority of Gulf Cooperation Council countries as well as Yemen were the lowest scorers of this index.
GCC food imports
The Gulf Cooperation Council region has a high decadence rate of food imports, mainly of important staples such as cereals. the UAE had the highest score in food security performance in the entire GCC and MENA region in 2022.
