Following more than a decade of seemingly inexorable increases in the number of undernourished people, estimates for 2010 presented in this edition of The State of Food Insecurity In The World show a glimmer of hope, with the first fall since 1995. But that still leaves nearly a billion people going hungry, and is it too early to know if this is the beginning of downward trend or merely a momentary dip in the number of undernourished. This edition focuses on a particular group of countries in protracted crisis where levels of undernourishment are estimated to be at almost at 40 percent. The report highlights actions that can be taken to rationalise the way protracted crises are handled. As this edition of SOFI 2010 shows, there are many challenges facing countries in protracted crisis; but they are not insurmountable - there is hope. Through improved understanding of the nature of protracted crisis comes the ability to respond more effectively. Also published in Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian and Spanish.