The Cartagena Declaration and the Sustainable Development Goal

Abstract

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) seek to end all forms of hunger and malnutrition by 2030 and ensure the access of all people, especially children, to sufficient and nutritious food throughout the year. However, the goals of SDG 2 “Zero Hunger,” and the other 16 SDGs do not include the problem of malnutrition associated with disease. Malnutrition (low weight, overweight and obesity, micronutrient deficiencies) associated with socio-economic factors (poor diet, hunger and poverty) and malnutrition associated with disease have different pathophysiological origins and mechanisms and therefore need different approaches. The Cartagena Declaration is an instrument where nutritional care is defined for the first time as a human right and can be considered as a strategy to give visibility and draw the attention of public policy makers on the need to advance in this field. By including this type of malnutrition within the global approach to the problem of population malnutrition, we would be contributing to achieving the SDG targets and, in particular, to the sustainable development of countries.