Maroon communities struggle with food insecurity
The study, called Quilombos do Brasil: Segurança Alimentar e Nutricional em Territórios Titulados (“Quilombos in Brazil – Food and Nutrition Security on Titled Land”), was published by the Ministry of Social Development and Fight against Hunger (MDS) and the Secretariat for Policies to Promote Racial Equality (SEPPIR).Qulombolas Estudo sobre segurança alimentar 
A government survey found that food insecurity faces 41.1% of children and adolescents and 55.6% of adults in the quilombos, Maroon communities formed by descendants from African Brazilian slaves escaping ill treatment and preserving their traditions.
The study, called Quilombos do Brasil: Segurança Alimentar e Nutricional em Territórios Titulados (“Quilombos in Brazil – Food and Nutrition Security on Titled Land”), looks into the food and nutrition conditions of quilombola communities and access to government services and programs, as well as the socioeconomic profiles of the families and communities. It was published Thursday (Nov. 20) by the Ministry of Social Development and Fight against Hunger (MDS) and the Secretariat for Policies to Promote Racial Equality (SEPPIR).
A detailed breakdown of regions with quilombola concentrations revealed the highest rate of children and adolescents facing food insecurity was in found the Lower Amazon, 79.1%. Other vulnerable areas are the northeast side of Pará state (43%), the north of Maranhão (45.7%), the semiarid portion of the North (31.7%) and the Central-South region (18%). In all the regions surveyed, 2.4% of children were found to be shorter than average, a typical symptom of chronic malnutrition.
“The situation in the Lower Amazon looks even more serious when you find children struggling with food deprivation and hunger in four out of every five households,” the document read.
The overweight and obesity rates were also notable in the communities, especially in children living in more developed regions of the country. One in every five of the total children surveyed was found to be overweight in spite of the serious economic and social vulnerability of these populations. “In the Central-Sourthern quilombos, which are located close to many urban centers with high population densities, 32.7% of children are overweight. This could be a symptom of the poor quality of the foods they have access to.”
Among the underlying factors leading to this situation, the study cites geographic and social isolation, as well as the poor integration of the quilombola territories with other geopolitical areas where goods and public services are more widely available. “Since these populations are especially attached to their land, violence stemming from persistent conflicts and unresolved issues in terms of land tenure only exacerbates this situation,” the study pointed out.
Silvanir Euclênio Silva of SEPPIR said that the findings are already providing a basis to inform public policies being developed to address the situation of vulnerability of the Maroon communities, including measures to boost their productive potential.
Translated by Mayra Borges
Fonte: Maroon communities struggle with food insecurity
