New FAO discussion paper on water productivity, yield gap, and nutrition

Food system transformation is needed to address the hundreds of millions of people without adequate access to water or food for a healthy life. Nutrition and malnutrition are inextricably linked to water for food, sanitation, hygiene.

With 30 percent of the world’s population living in water-stressed environments, the impacts of water scarcity and malnutrition are expected to affect half of the world’s population.

A new discussion paper from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), investigates the relationship between water, food security and nutrition using data from Ethiopia on yield, water productivity, and the macro and micronutrient contents of food.

An improved management of water, for increased efficiency and productivity, is one of the pre-conditions for the achievement of SDGs 1 (no poverty), 2 (end hunger and all forms of malnutrition), 3 (good health and well-being) and 6 (water use efficiency) which are the focus of the paper “Water productivity, the yield gap, and nutrition. The case of Ethiopia”.

• Download the discussion paper “Water productivity, the yield gap, and nutrition. The case of Ethiopia."