BERLIN, Oct. 14 (Xinhua) -- Conflicts and climate change are leading to significant setbacks in the fight against global hunger, the German organization Welthungerhilfe said on Thursday.

In its 2021 Global Hunger Index (GHI), the organization said that around 811 million people worldwide are suffering from hunger, while 41 million live on the brink of famine. The situation is particularly dramatic in Somalia, Yemen, Afghanistan, Madagascar and South Sudan.

"The world is off course in the fight against hunger, moving further and further away from the binding goal of ending hunger by 2030," Welthungerhilfe said.

The new World Hunger Index examines the food situation in 128 countries, and shows that 47 of these (including 28 in sub-Saharan Africa) will not even reach low levels of hunger by 2030.

"Our fears of last year have unfortunately been confirmed," said Marlehn Thieme, president of Welthungerhilfe. The COVID-19 pandemic has "once again exacerbated the tense food situation in many countries of the South, and millions of families have lost their livelihoods."

However, the biggest drivers of hunger are still conflicts and climate change. "The poorest and most vulnerable are being hit particularly hard by the consequences of climate change," said Thieme. Enditem

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