“Though hidden hunger is invisible, its impact is anything but silent. The time to act is NOW.”

On Wednesday, October 16th, the world marked World Food Day under the theme, “The Right to Food for a Better Life and a Better Future.” This year’s commemoration held special significance, celebrating the 20th anniversary of the FAO’s Voluntary Guidelines on the Right to Food. Despite two decades of these guidelines and over a decade since Kenya explicitly enshrined the right to food in its constitution, fully mainstreaming it as a fundamental human right—on par with other socio-economic rights like education—remains a challenge.

This year’s theme also served as a critical reminder that access to food is not just a privilege but a basic human right. While the world has made significant strides in combating food insecurity, there is an often-overlooked aspect of this crisis—hidden hunger. Unlike the visible forms of malnutrition, hidden hunger does not present in empty stomachs or obviously visible symptoms at first, instead, it often goes unnoticed but has devastating long-term effects on health, productivity, and development, particularly among the urban poor and dryland communities living in Kenya.

According to FAO, hidden hunger is micronutrient deficiencies resulting from inadequate intake of minerals and vitamins. Globally, it affects about 2 billion people, with the majority of them living in developing countries. Africa, unfortunately, bears a significant portion of this burden.

Hidden hunger also referred to as micronutrient malnutrition is a significant public health challenge with deficiencies of iron, vitamin A, zinc and iodine being prevalent.  These micronutrients which are vital for proper body functioning miss from many household diets, which particularly affects women and children. A 2024 Lancet Global Health Report showed that every 1 in 2 children younger than 5 years are deficient of either iron, zinc or vitamin A and 2 in 3 women of reproductive age (15-49 years) suffer from iron, zinc and folate deficiency worldwide.  Without these micronutrients, children face the risk of stunted growth, poor cognitive development, and a weakened immune system. For pregnant women, micronutrient deficiencies can lead to complications during childbirth, increased maternal mortality, and babies born with low birth weights, perpetuating the cycle of poverty and malnutrition.

Kenya has made notable strides in improving food security through interventions like school feeding programs, irrigation projects, input subsidies, and social protection. While many Kenyans now have more food on their plates, malnutrition remains a significant challenge. According to the Kenya National Micronutrient Survey, 83.3% of preschool children are zinc deficient, 36.1% of pregnant women and 21.8% of children under 5 are iron deficient, and 9.2% of the population faces vitamin A deficiency, with 52.6% of children under 5 at risk. Folate deficiency affects 32.1% of pregnant women and 22.1% of school-age children are iodine deficient.

For instance, Kenya’s urban population has been rapidly growing as a result of urbanization, and with it, a rise in poverty particularly in informal settlements. Urban poor households often struggle to afford nutritious food, relying on cheap, highly processed foods with little nutritional value. The price of fruits, vegetables, and fortified foods is often out of reach. As a result, these communities are disproportionately affected by hidden hunger, especially the women and children.

For the urban poor, it is not just about food access —a lack of access to clean water and proper sanitation — exacerbates the problem. Poor sanitation and hygiene lead to more frequent illnesses, which makes it harder for the body to absorb what little nutrients are available. This vicious cycle leaves many urban poor children undernourished despite consuming enough calories, trapping them in a state of hidden hunger.

In Kenya’s dryland regions — including counties such as Turkana, Samburu, Marsabit, and Garissa — which are home to pastoralist communities, the food nutrition challenges are different but equally severe. These areas experience erratic rainfall, frequent droughts, and land degradation making farming and livestock production difficult, further reducing food availability. As a result, micronutrient-rich foods like fruits, vegetables, and animal products become either scarce or unaffordable.

Moreover, frequent droughts lead to reliance on food aid or relief, which often lacks the nutritional diversity needed for a well-balanced diet. Consequently, these communities suffer the dual burden of food insecurity and hidden hunger, leaving women and children most vulnerable to its health impacts.

Hidden hunger is linked to a range of serious health problems:

• Iron deficiency, for instance, is one of the leading causes of anemia, a condition that reduces the body’s ability to fight infections affecting pregnant women and children the most.
• Vitamin A deficiency is a leading cause of preventable blindness in children, increases the risk of death from infections like measles and increases the risk of maternal and child mortality.
• Zinc deficiency compromises immune function, making infections more severe and longer-lasting.

Addressing this silent epidemic is crucial for securing the right to food for all, especially the vulnerable populations in Kenya’s urban poor and dryland communities. Strengthening food security policies, expanding fortification programs, and promoting nutrition-sensitive agriculture like agroecology must be prioritized.

By: Alice Ritho, Researcher, Nutrition and Food Systems, Jacqueline K. Kung’u, Ph.D., Research Scientist, Nutrition and Food Systems, Felistus Mwalia, Policy Engagement and Communications, and William S. Mawia, Policy Engagement and Communications