The latest findings from the Institute of Development Studies’ (IDS) Hunger and Nutrition Commitment Donor Index (HANCI) show that the UK has topped the rankings for the second year running, in the effort to fight hunger and undernutrition.

The HANCI donor index is a league table that measures the political commitment of donor governments to reducing hunger and nutrition in middle and low income countries. The index assesses donor performance against 14 indicators spanning the dimensions of agriculture and food security, nutrition, climate change, gender and social protection.

A high level of donor commitment is essential to prioritise the fight against hunger and undernutrition. This commitment is about more than just giving aid, it is also about countries’ engagement in international treaties that help combat hunger and undernutrition and the coherence of countries’ domestic policies in relation international aid objectives to issues such as agricultural trade protection and the use of biofuels. Taking such a rounded approach, the HANCI Donor Index shows that a country such as the USA, which is a big donor in absolute money terms, ranks 19th out of the 23 donor countries on overall political commitment.

Lead HANCI researcher at IDS, Dr Rajith Lakshman said: “Donors can play a leading role in the global fight against hunger and undernutrition. They can do so through providing a fair share of aid, by meeting spending promises, and doing so in a steady manner. That’s what the UK and Canada do right, and this is why they are at the top of the index and why some others are not.”

See the press release and download the report (pdf).