The food and nutrition situation in the Near East Region is characterised by the presence of a number of problems; the most important of which are:

§  The lack of food security for wide sectors of the population that live in poverty and are incapable of obtaining the necessary food in terms of quantity and diversity. This translates itself by the prevalence of under-nutrition resulting from the consumption of less than adequate quantities of energy and proteins as well as by the prevalence of micronutrient deficiencies.

§ The prevalence of unhealthy food habits and modes of consumption among the different social strata as a result of the fast urbanisation and changes in lifestyle. On the one hand, this leads to the consumption of diets low in fibre and micronutrients, and on the other hand, to the consumption of high quantities of energy and fats which exceed the bodily needs and result in the increase in the prevalence of obesity and of food-related chronic diseases in this region.

§   Food safety and the control of food and water contaminants are important issues in the region, which calls for the modernisation of food control systems especially in view of the increasing volume of international food trade.

These problems of food and nutrition exist in all countries of the Near East, but their degree of prevalence varies from one country to the other depending on their incomes. As a result, the countries of the Near East region can be described as passing through a “nutritional transition” in which problems of under-nutrition coexist with food-related chronic diseases.

Food insecurity is without doubt the most prevalent and important problem in the Near East region. It is the product of the interplay of a number of factors peculiar to the region itself and relating to its eco-geography, demography, political stability, and economy.

From the geographical point of view, the Near East is considered as the most water-scarce region in the world. While it occupies 12.1% of the world’s surface area, and is home for 6.2% of the world’s population, it has only 1.5% of its renewable fresh water resources. Besides, it has only 8.6% of the world’s arable land and 11% of its irrigated land, and land reclamation is considered as a major challenge in the region because of the high salinity of soil.

In addition to that, the region suffers from recurrent drought conditions and persistent desertification which affect negatively its crop and livestock production, and consequently the food security of its population especially that around half of the population in some countries still live in rural areas. For example, the drought that hit the region in 1999-2000, led to falls of between 16 and 80% in the cereal production of the Maghreb countries as well as Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, The Syrian Arab Republic, Turkey and Yemen affecting the availability of the staple food for the people of these countries.

To this is added, the high population growth rate that this region witnesses. With a population growing by a yearly average of 2.2%, a rate amongst the highest in the world, the pressure put on its already scarce agricultural resources makes it structurally incapable of feeding its population. This is why the region depends on food imports to meet the needs of its people. During the last forty years, net imports of cereals have risen from 6.5 million tons to about 55 million tons which makes it stand at about one fifth of the world cereal imports. In general, food imports into the region increase by 5% per year, with cereals figuring highest on the list, followed by dairy products, sugar and vegetable oils. As the value of the annual agricultural imports to the region equals three times the value of its exports, the region is considered as a net importer of these commodities which makes it more vulnerable to changes in the prices of these commodities in the international market. 

Also, many countries in the region suffer from political situations which have an effect on the food security in these countries whether in determining the availability of food commodities, their diversity, or their accessibility and which in turn negatively affects the nutritional status of the people of these countries. The economic sanctions that are enforced on Iraq, the successive besieges that the West Bank and Gaza Strip suffer from, and the civil wars in some countries in the region are important factors in determining the type and prevalence of the food and nutritional problems in these countries.

In as much as the economic factor is concerned, the region knows great differentials in the income of its constituent countries which makes it possible to group them into three groups:

Under-nutrition

The World Bank estimates show that there are 110 million people, out of the 273 million inhabitants of the Middle East and North Africa, who live under the line of poverty as their daily income does not exceed 2 US dollars. Of those, 75 million live in extreme poverty as they do not earn more than 1 dollar a day, and 60 – 70% of those poor live in rural areas. Although data on the effect of poverty on the nutritional status of the people of the region are not available, it is evident that large numbers of people in the low-income countries suffer from food insecurity and from under-nutrition resulting from insufficient intakes of energy and from other forms of malnutrition.

Under-nutrition is a serious problem that leads to growth retardation and to stunting and wasting among children as well as to the birth of Low Birth Weight babies who are more prone to neonatal death than normal weight babies. Stunting is a serious problem in Yemen and in Djibouti where its prevalence is 44% in the former and 26% in the latter and also in Tunisia and Morocco, where it is reported at 23%. Children in Iran, Libya, and Bahrain suffer from stunting to a lesser extent where the reported percentages are 19, 15, and 10%, respectively. Wasting, on the other hand, is reported to be 13% in both of Yemen and Djibouti, 9% in both of Syria and Algeria, 7% in Iran, and 6% in Egypt.

This phenomenon is widespread in all of the countries in the Near East, but is more common in low-income countries. Many studies have shown the presence of such problems in middle-income and even high-income countries. This is because of the huge disparity of individual incomes within some of these countries, which leads to the presence of less affluent areas within the middle-income and high-income countries. In many of these countries, not only rural areas did not get their share of the relative prosperity that affected urban areas, but also their situation deteriorated leading to an increase in poverty. Also, poverty did increase in some urban and peri-urban areas where lives many people who do not earn enough money to satisfy their needs  (job seekers, female-headed households, the elderly, …..)

Micronutrient Deficiencies

Deficiencies in Iron and in Iodine are the two prominent problems in the countries of the Near East. Iron deficiency and its related anaemia problems are widespread among women, especially of child-bearing age, and among children. It is estimated that more than one third of the population is anaemic in the region. Also, and because of the poorness of the soil in Iodine and the limited consumption of seafood and fish in many countries in the region, one third of the population in the Near East is at risk of developing Iodine Deficiency Disorders. Even though many countries in the region started their iodised salt programs many years back, only two countries (Iran and Tunisia) to-date have achieved zero prevalence of Iodine Deficiency Disorders (IDD) among their people. Other micronutrient deficiencies were reported in some countries in the region like vitamin D deficiency among the under-fives in Yemen, Morocco, and Iran; and vitamin A deficiency among the under-fives in Morocco and Egypt.

Over-nutrition

This type of malnutrition resulting from the consumption of high quantities of energy is found in all countries of the region but is very widely spread in high-income countries and moderately so in middle-income countries. It is related to the change that occurred in the food habits of the countries of the region. While the traditional food diet was based on consuming cereals and grains, which are rich sources of complex carbohydrates, most countries of the region are seeing their food habits converging towards a diet high in energy, especially that coming from fat and sugar, and poor in fibre found usually in wheat and grains. Because of these dietary changes; on one hand, and the changes that affected the lifestyle of the people of the region, where comfort has become preferable to movement; on the other hand, the region is witnessing a rapid increase in the incidences of obesity, both among adults and children. In Kuwait, for example, the percentage of obesity prevalence among women is 44%, which is among the highest percentage in the world. These high rates of obesity are accompanied by the increase in the prevalence of food-related chronic diseases such as cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, and some types of cancer as reported in many countries of the region.

During the last three decades, securing safe and good quality food as well as protecting the consumer from fraud were high on the agenda of the countries of the region. This is why governments worked to put in place food standards and regulations to ensure this goal besides establishing food analysis laboratories and enforcing the food control systems in their countries. However, with the growing importance of the agricultural sector and the food processing establishments in some countries of the region, together with the application of the new international food trade rules as contained in the World Trade Organisation agreements on Sanitary and Pytosanitary Measures (SPS) and Technical Barriers to trade (TBT), several changes in the food control systems in the countries of the region became necessary. Modernisation of the laboratory facilities, training of staff members on new methods of risk analysis and new methods of sampling and inspection, the harmonisation of the local food standards with those of the Codex Alimentarius, as well as the establishment of a national authority which has the sole responsibility of implementing the food inspection and control in each country became necessary, especially that many countries in the region are members in the WTO or are trying to join in.

RNE's role in the region has been to help countries in handling the challenges they face in matters related to food and nutritional problems through:

·     The continuous follow-up of the food and nutrition situation in the countries of the region and the planning and implementation of programs that aim at resolving the identified problems by involving local communities and non governmental associations in the design and implementation of such programs.

·     Assisting countries in the region in the development and implementation of national and local nutrition policies that aim at ensuring the food security of their people, especially those living in poverty.

·     Providing technical assistance to the national bodies in charge of establishing the Food Based Dietary Guidelines that aim at addressing the nutritional problems of the population.

·     Technical assistance to integrate nutrition in the different development and poverty alleviation programs.

·     Dissemination of information related to good nutrition and to food safety through brochures, conferences, educational packages, and the different mass media.

·     Training and capacity-building of national staff working in nutrition and in food inspection to improve member states' food control and consumer protection services.

·     Documentation of traditional foods as to their preparation, nutritional properties, food composition and their potential use in programs of local development.

·     Providing technical assistance for the upgrading of local and regional food composition tables.

Proceedings of the Regional Workshop on 'Improving Household Food Security & Nutrition in the Near East', Cairo, Egypt, 11th-14th November, 2001