Women receive emergency food at a distribution centre near the centre of Lodwar Town in Northern Kenya. Kenya has been ranked as the 49th hungriest nation on earth. [Photo: trocaire.org]Kenya has been ranked as the 49th hungriest country on earth only slightly outperforming dictatorships like North Korea and conflict-ravaged Iraq, Afghanistan and the Central African Republic.This, according to a new report, means Kenya is among the league of nations in the world that cannot fully feed their citizens.The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) experts estimate that Kenya would need to invest Sh21.3 billion in five years to address the country’s nutrition problems."Kenya has yet to reach its nutrition targets, and some localities are lagging behind and face more serious hunger and nutrition challenges," says the Global Hunger Index 2017 report prepared by IFPRI.The report adds that the drought affecting East Africa this year has created additional food security challenges for large parts of Kenya, hurting harvests, livestock and food prices.According to Kenya's Ministry of Agriculture, at least 3.4 million people across the country are currently facing hunger and require food donations.Globally, the report looks at 119 developing countries where it measures hunger using four data points: undernourishment, child wasting, child stunting and child mortality.IFPRI report was released ahead of World Food Day on Monday.

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