Conflict, drought deepen food insecurity in Africa, Middle East
According to a report by the United Nations agriculture agency, protracted fighting and unrest are swelling the ranks of displaced and hungry people in some parts of the world, even as large agricultural harvests in some regions are buoying global food supply conditions.
According to a report by the United Nations agriculture agency, protracted fighting and unrest are swelling the ranks of displaced and hungry people in some parts of the world, even as large agricultural harvests in some regions are buoying global food supply conditions.
“Civil conflict continues to be a main driver of food insecurity, having triggered famine conditions in South Sudan and put populations in Yemen and northern Nigeria at high risk of localized famine,” said the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in a press release.
FAO also notes that adverse weather conditions are exacerbating the threat of famine in Somalia. Refugees from civil strife in countries such as Iraq, Syria, and Central African Republic are putting additional pressure on local food supplies in host communities.
The report also points out that some 5.5 million people are estimated to be severely food insecure in South Sudan, where maize and sorghum prices are now four times higher than in April 2016. In Somalia, about 3.2 million people need food and agricultural emergency assistance, while in Yemen the figure is as high as 17 million. In northern Nigeria, disruption caused by conflict has left 7.1 million people facing acute food insecurity in the affected areas.
According to the FAO, 37 countries require external assistance for food: Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Guinea, Haiti, Iraq, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mozambique, Myanmar, Niger, Nigeria, Pakistan, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Swaziland, Syria, Uganda, Yemen, and Zimbabwe.