From 720 million to 811 million were undernourished people worldwide including more than half of poor in Asia, the authors of the report revealed.

The United Nations on Monday reported a “dramatic worsening” of world hunger, with 720 million to 811 million undernourished people worldwide, largely linked to the Wuhan virus pandemic. An estimated 9.9% of the global population was undernourished last year, up from 8.4% in 2019, according to the joint report from a number of U.N.agencies.

About 418 million, or more than half, of all undernourished people live in Asia; about 282 million people, or a third, live in Africa; and 60 million live in Latin America and the Caribbean. Africa saw the greatest rise in hunger, where an estimated 21% of the population was undernourished — more than double of any other region.

The report also found that nearly 2.4 billion people, or 30% of the world’s population, did not have access to enough food year round, up about 320 million people during the year.