THE United Nations' 2022 State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World Report said the number of people affected by hunger rose last year in Asia from 418 million to 425 million.
In Asia and around the world, we're not making progress on reducing hunger, malnutrition and food insecurity.
The report said eight per cent of the world's population (or 670 million people) would face hunger at the end of the decade, which is the same number of people facing hunger in 2015.
There are three reasons for this: Covid-19, conflict and climate change.
The pandemic caused disruption to food systems. Movement restrictions and lockdowns exposed the fragility of the food supply chain.
Meanwhile, with Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the flow of essential foods, including wheat and barley supplies, has been disrupted and global food prices have skyrocketed.
As devastating as these drivers of food insecurity have been, their trajectory is finite. Climate change is another matter.
Earlier this year, Asean and CropLife Asia partnered to conduct the Policymaker Survey: Climate Change Impact on Asean Agriculture.
The research, led by market research firm PSB Insights, was to gain an understanding of how climate change affected regional food systems.
The findings showed that more than half of regional policymakers cited climate change as the biggest obstacle facing food systems.
Also, 60 per cent said Southeast Asia's farmers were the most negatively affected by the impact of climate change on food productivity or security.
It's hard to argue with Asean policymakers citing farmers as being most vulnerable to climate change impact.
Asia is home to the smallest-sized farms and largest number of smallholders in the world (smallholders are generally farmers who grow on fewer than 2ha of land).
Our smallholders face challenges, such as availability of finance, landholder rights issues, access to technology and labour shortages.
Climate change is taking a devastating toll on smallholders in Malaysia and in the region.
Changing weather patterns are driving disruption with planting and harvesting seasons; increased droughts and floods that spur the spread of more pests, weeds, and diseases to contend with; loss of biodiversity; direct damage to soil quality, including rising salinity levels; and, exacerbated water scarcity.
All of these impact smallholder farmers' yields, livelihoods and, ultimately, food security.
Something else came to light in the survey.
Policymakers expressed an expectation that the public and private sectors work together to address the impact of climate change, protect food systems in the region, and increase access as well as education in innovation in agricultural technology and science.
Technology is playing an increasingly critical and transformative role with food production and security.
Digital technologies such as soil sensors and satellites are being used to preemptively diagnose and treat crop threats.
Data analysis and global positioning system (GPS) tracking technologies are helping improve seed shipping routes.
The use of drones or unmanned aerial vehicles with pesticide applications is growing in Asia due to the advantages it delivers: efficiency with the use of inputs, enhanced spray precision, reduced water consumption, and less dependence on labour.
Meanwhile, plant science innovations are an essential tool in the drive to greater food security.
Pesticides, or crop protection products, have been developed that are less toxic, more efficient, and increasingly "greener" while still delivering effectiveness.
Without the use of pesticides, roughly 40 per cent of global rice and corn harvests would be lost every year.
Biotech or genetically modified (GM) crops have been developed with improved traits, such as increased yield, better resistance to pests, improved nutritional value, and greater drought tolerance.
GM crops have also enabled farmers to be more efficient with the application of pesticides, thus reducing environmental impact as well as saving time and money.
Unfortunately, many technologies that can drive food security in Asia never reach the hands of smallholders due to a lack of national regulations to help ensure their access and responsible use.
With rising food insecurity this World Food Day (Oct 16) in the wake of Covid-19, conflict and climate change, the stakes are high.
It's time for stronger partnership and collaboration among the private sector, governments, civil society and the regional food value chain to ensure smallholders have the tools and resources to grow more safe, affordable and nutritious food sustainably.
The writer is executive director of CropLife Asia