preservation technologies and beter storage and handling infrastructure, and educate con- sumers on good eating habits. Reducing food safety risks along the value chain will require strong legal, regulatory, and institutional frame- works in addition to increased capacity for food safety monitoring.


X


Reduce inequalities with a focus on gender. Addressing inequalities can improve the food security, nutrition, and potential for advance- ment of poor and vulnerable people. For example, improving access to quality education for dis- advantaged groups can improve human capital, which is particularly needed in countries where an inadequate human capital base and skill mis- match are a rising challenge.24 Given the impor- tance of gender equity in improving food security and nutrition,25 MICs should focus on empow- ering women. To close the gender gap, including in agriculture, MICs should increase access to physical, financial, and human capital for women and girls.26


X


Improve rural infrastructure. Rural infrastruc- ture development can upgrade the non-farm rural sector by providing more opportunities for via- ble livelihoods and improving living standards, thus potentially stemming rural–urban divides.27 MICs could also improve access to clean water, provide adequate sanitation, promote proper hygiene (WASH), and increase health clinics in rural areas. Investments in such rural infrastruc- ture are particularly important where a lack of improved sanitation facilities greatly exacerbates undernutrition.28


X


Expand effective social safety nets. Scaling up properly designed and implemented social safety nets to protect the poorest is imperative if MICs are to address inequality, reduce hunger and malnutrition, and promote inclusive growth.29 Governments can invest more in improving tar- geting and scaling up cross-sectoral social safety nets. Tese safety nets should be expanded for vulnerable groups to provide short-term cushion


X


for coping with livelihood shocks, as well as long- term productivity-enhancing opportunities or opportunities to exit out of agriculture. Mex- ico has had success in improving health, nutri- tion, and education for poor families,30 as well as addressing inequality through its conditional cash transfer program, Oportunidades.31


Facilitate south–south knowledge sharing and learning. To further contribute to the reduction of global hunger and malnutrition, MICs should focus on the mutual exchange of innovative ideas, technologies, and policies that have worked with each other and other developing countries. For instance, South Korea’s Knowledge Sharing Platform has promoted development of expe- rience-based cooperation since 2004, and its successful New Community Movement is being integrated into development programs in Africa and Southeast Asia.32 For effective knowledge and technology transfer, it is imperative to bear in mind that country-specific conditions mater. For example, agricultural technologies used in China could be assessed for their applicability in countries with similar geoeconomic and political landscapes.33


CONCLUSION


Eliminating hunger and malnutrition should be a top priority for MICs, particularly for those with increas- ing global influence and large numbers of hungry and malnourished people. Trough mutual learning and the capacity to mobilize resources from domes- tic sources, MICs can accelerate the pace toward enhanced food security and nutrition in their coun- tries. MICs can also play a critical role in helping to reduce hunger and malnutrition in other develop- ing countries through investments, aid, and knowl- edge sharing. For MICs to best fulfill their vital role in supporting the elimination of global hunger and malnutrition, these countries must promote effective country-led strategies that will reduce hunger and malnutrition at home. ■


REACHING THE MISSING MIDDLE


17


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