The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture 2020

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PART 1 
WORLD REVIEW
amino acids, vitamins (particularly A, B and D) 
and minerals such as iron, calcium, zinc and 
selenium. This unique nutritional composition 
means that fish represents a valuable source for 
healthy dietary diversification, even in relatively 
small quantities. This is more important 
for many low-income food-deficit countries 
(LIFDCs) and least developed countries (LDCs), 
where populations may be overly dependent 
on a relatively narrow selection of staple foods, 
which cannot provide adequate amounts of 
essential amino acids, vitamins, micronutrients 
and healthy fats. 
According to the 2019 edition of 
The State 
of Food Security and Nutrition in the World
(FAO 
et al
., 2019) about 11 percent (more than 
820 million people) of the world’s population 
remain undernourished, up from 10.6 percent 
in 2015. While, in absolute terms, the majority 
of undernourished people are located in South 
Asia, in Africa, and in particular in sub-Saharan 
Africa, this indicator has been pointing to 
deteriorating global food security. This is due 
to many factors, including the pressure of 
increasing population, conflicts and instability, 
income inequalities, poverty and ineffective 
nutritional policies. At the same time, progress 
towards World Health Organization global 
malnutrition reduction targets for 2030, now 
aligned with the timeline of the SDGs, in