The 2022 Global Report on Food Crises Mid-Year Update says Africa is the continent with the largest population density, and at least one out of every five people living in Africa goes to bed hungry.
Furthermore, an estimated 140 million people in Africa confront acute food insecurity. These statistics were found in the report.
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As a consequence of this, Google has just made an announcement on the establishment of a new artificial intelligence research facility in an effort to combat food shortages in Africa. The global technology corporation made the announcement on Monday, adding their name to the increasing number of companies and organisations that have shown their commitment to supporting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Digital project being undertaken by the United Nations.
The United Nations, the commercial sector, finance bodies, international organisations, and charitable foundations have all committed to contributing financially, strategically, and operationally to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Digital project in order to assist in getting the SDGs back on track.
A high-level SDG Digital event was organised by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) as a part of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Action Weekend. The purpose of the event was to boost digital support for the world’s 2030 Agenda.
Google and It’s Development In Solving Food Insecurity
Google, for its part, has announced the development of an AI centre focused on solving food insecurity in Africa, as well as the allocation of $25 million in financing to 15 AI projects as part of its Global Goals Impact Challenge on AI for the SDGs, including those in Kenya and South Africa. Both of these announcements were made in conjunction with Google’s focus on using AI to help achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Significant commitments have also been made by the Global Satellite Operators Association (GSOA), Google, Microsoft, Millicom, Telenor, ZTE, the Government of the Republic of Korea, and the Government of Saudi Arabia to accelerate progress towards universal and meaningful connectivity as well as long-term digital transformation.
According to the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), these pledges add to more than 750 others totaling more than 32 billion dollars that have been amassed since the beginning of the Partner2Connect Digital Coalition campaign in February 2022.
During the launch of the Sustainable Development Goals for Digitalization, the Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations, Amina J. Mohammed, stated that “digital technologies, when used safely and responsibly, can be catalysts of economic, social, and societal transformation by creating efficiencies at scale and expanding the reach of existing solutions to support more people.”