Ensuring global food security is a critical challenge that necessitates innovative solutions and advanced technologies. This study explores how the fourth industrial revolution (Industry 4.0) technologies can transform global food security by enhancing availability, access, utilization, stability, agency, and sustainability. Technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT), Artificial Intelligence (AI), big data, blockchain, and robotics are detailed, highlighting their current applications in the food sector. Emphasizing Sustainable Development Goal 2: Zero Hunger, the study examines how precision agriculture, smart farming, automated machinery, real-time monitoring, data analytics, and digitalization can improve food production, distribution, and quality, ultimately fostering food security. This comprehensive analysis offers strategic insights and policy recommendations for stakeholders to leverage these transformative technologies, ensuring a sustainable and secure food future for all.

The ongoing conflict in the Gaza Strip has precipitated a severe humanitarian and socio-economic crisis with profound implications for sustainable development across environmental, social, and economic dimensions. As of June 2025, hostilities have resulted in approximately 55,000 fatalities and thousands of severe injuries, with critical infrastructure, such as hospitals, schools, and sanitation facilities, have been devastated. This study examines the far-reaching impacts of the Gaza conflict on progress toward the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), focusing mainly on areas such as public health, education, clean water access, and environmental preservation. The roots of the current crisis trace back to 2007, when a blockade was imposed, severely limiting access to essential resources and contributing to prolonged socio-economic decline. Escalating hostilities since October 2023 have intensified these challenges, leading to the degradation of vital natural resources, widespread environmental pollution, and further damage to already fragile ecosystems. This research employs a comprehensive review of both scholarly and grey literature, utilizing data from international reports and region-specific studies to assess how conflict-driven disruptions have impacted Gaza’s trajectory toward critical SDGs. The study applies the ‘Wedding Cake’ model of sustainable development to illustrate how environmental degradation undermines social structures and economic stability. By framing Gaza’s challenges within the SDG framework, this analysis underscores the critical need for a multifaceted, globally coordinated response to address the intertwined crises of human suffering, environmental destruction, and economic collapse. Ultimately, the study advocates for sustainable solutions prioritizing ecological health and resilience as foundations for long-term peace and recovery in Gaza and beyond.

This chapter examines how fourth industrial revolution (Industry 4.0) technologies can serve as powerful enablers for poverty reduction by transforming the food sector, in alignment with Sustainable Development Goal 1 (SDG 1). Recognizing poverty as a multidimensional challenge, the chapter focuses on the role of recent technological innovations, such as artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things, blockchain, and big data, among other Industry 4.0 technologies, in revolutionizing agriculture and the food industry. These innovative advances offer significant potential to enhance productivity, optimize resource use, reduce post-harvest losses, and increase market access for smallholder farmers and food producers. Through a literature review, the chapter outlines mechanisms by which Industry 4.0 can generate inclusive employment and elevate incomes in rural and underserved communities. The findings emphasize that effective digital transformation in the food sector requires targeted investments in infrastructure, skills development, supportive policy frameworks, and multi-stakeholder collaboration. By strategically leveraging Industry 4.0 innovations, the food system can become a critical vehicle for sustainable, inclusive economic development and long-term poverty alleviation.

In this article, the author name ‘Abderahman Rejeb’ was incorrectly published as ‘Abderrahman Rajeb’. The original article has been corrected.