We will end world hunger in 20 years, vows Gates
THE curse of world hunger and malnutrition will be ended by 2040 through major breakthroughs in science, Bill Gates will say today.
And malaria will be ‘virtually eliminated’, according to the billionaire US philanthropist.
Official figures show around 820million people suffer from hunger around the world with nearly a billion more having other forms of malnutrition which result in severe weight loss and impaired development.
Giving a lecture at Cambridge University, Microsoft tycoon Mr Gates, 63, will say solving malnutrition could also help end the obesity epidemic in the West and prevent asthma, allergies and some autoimmune diseases.
He will stress: ‘I get asked a lot what I would choose if I could only solve one problem. My answer is always malnutrition. It’s the greatest health inequity in the world. Period. By solving malnutrition, we can fix one of the biggest contributors to inequity.’
Mr Gates predicts over the next 20 years ‘ we will solve malnutrition and significantly reduce the number of nutrition- related deaths’. He will say: ‘If you don’t get enough nutrition during the first three years of life, you don’t develop properly – physically or mentally.’ The businessman will give the Hawking Fellowship lecture – named after Professor Stephen Hawking who died in 2018. Gates used to discuss science with the professor.
He will say two forms of malnutrition are well–understood – those caused by infections and a lack of nutrients. But a third cause remains a puzzle.
Children suffering from starvation often continue to struggle when their diet returns to normal. Mr Gates argues this is to do with an imbalance of bacteria in the gut. He insists the solution lies in a deeper understanding of the microbiome – good bacteria in the gut – and predicts scientists will be able to ‘smartly engineer interventions’ to fix microbiomes.
Mr Gates will say the breakthroughs will also have ‘huge benefits for the rich world’ in battling obesity, asthma, allergies and autoimmune diseases. ‘ Over and under-nutrition are two sides of the same coin. If we can figure nutrition out – and I believe we will within the next two decades – we’ll save millions of lives and improve even more.’ Mr Gates, who has spent years trying to help tackle malaria, will also say he believes the disease will be ‘virtually eliminated’ by 2040 through inserting genes into mosquitoes to stop them reproducing.