Food Insecurity in the Middle East and North Africa Regions - Essay Example

Food security refers to a situation when a region is able to provide enough food for its citizens while food insecurity is the reverse of food security. Most developed countries manifest food security while poor, warring, and developing nations manifest food insecurity. Food security is the backbone of a country’s economy since food is a basic need among the citizens and even among the military.

A region with stable food security enjoys economic development, social peace, social growth, and good governance. Food insecurity leads to an outbreak of nutrition deficiency diseases, other diseases due to lack of strength those food offers, uprisings, and criminal activities as people seek for themselves. Food insecurity first affects children and families living in poverty with long-lasting effects on their health and development. Indeed, food insecurity is the cause of the recent uprisings in North Africa and the Middle East (FAO Web).

The Tunisian youth who burnt himself due to lack of employment and food insecurity was the start of revolutions in the Middle East. Food insecurity arises from poor climatic conditions, war, poor governance, calamities, and poor food strategies. Indeed, many countries in North Africa and in the Middle East are experiencing food insecurity conditions subject to some or all of the listed causes and the situation is deteriorating with time. In the last two decades, the Middle East was facing dire food insecurity and the situation is recurring hence the global concern on this issue.

International food prices are hitting an all-time high a situation that puts the Middle East and North Africa region at a higher risk of food insecurity. As such, just as there were food riots in 2008, the same is happening in recent times. Actually, food insecurity and other social inequalities hold the keys to a prosperous future for the Middle East and North Africa Countries. However, food insecurity varies differently among these regions. While countries like Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates display a low risk of food insecurity, countries like Iran, Libya, Tunisia, and Turkey manifest moderate risk of food insecurity.