FAO : Hunger, malnutrition down 40 % in Brazil

The number of Brazilians suffering from hunger or malnutrition fell 40.4 percent in the past two decades, said a report released Tuesday by UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). According to the report, the share of the Brazilian population suffering from hunger or malnutrition has decreased from 14.9 percent in 1990-92 to 6.9 percent in 2010-12, totalling now 13 million out of the entire population of 196 million. FAO attributed the significant decrease to Brazil's social programs, including the wealth transfer program Bolsa Familia, which provides poor families with a monthly stipend, with both a fixed part and a variable part subject to adjustment when families have more children. The report praised the program especially as it puts money directly into the hands of the women to empower them and raise their status within the house. It added that Bolsa Familia "increased the labor participation of women by 16 percent." FAO also lauded efforts to reduce malnutrition in Belo Horizonte,Brazil's third largest city, where government programs managed to reduce child mortality by 60 percent and "substantially influenced Brazil's national Zero Hunger Policy, using only around 2 percent of the city's annual budget." According to FAO, Latin America and the Caribbean in general registered progress in reducing hunger and malnutrition. The number of hungry or undernourished people in the region fell from 65 million in 1990-92 to 49 million in 2010-12.