Evaluation of Global Food Security Index Indicators with 2020 COVID19 Period Data and Country Comparisons

Abstract

Fluctuating global economic growth, rising inequality, political instability and forced migration have a significant impact on whether the population is well-nourished. While climate change and depletion of natural resources increase these negativities, they make it difficult to reach the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs) by 2030. According to research by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), 35 to 122 million people will fall into poverty by 2030 and there will be less food security due to climate-related problems. The food security and nutritional status of the most vulnerable communities are expected to worsen due to the health and socio-economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. In the study, the comparative situations of the countries including Turkey were planned to be analyzed by Multi-Criteria Decision Making methods with the 2020 COVID-19 period data in terms of food security, which is among the main headings of the United Nations 2030 Development Goals. The study presents an novelty to the literature by drawing attention to the increasing food security problem with the global COVID-19 pandemic, and also by using Multi-Criteria Decision Making methods and cluster analysis from data mining methods.. According to the final ranking obtained by the Borda Count method in the study, Singapore ranks first, followed by Finland, Sweden, Switzerland, the United States and the Netherlands, respectively. In both the COPRAS and MAUT rankings, six of the top 10 nations are European Union members. Indonesia, India, South Africa, Thailand, Brazil, and Slovakia are at the bottom of the Borda ranking