SGGP
According to a report recently released by the United Nations (UN), in 2022, more than 258 million people in 58 countries around the world faced the most severe hunger crisis in the past seven years.
 |
| People in Yemen surround a charity kitchen. |
A disturbing indictment.
2022 marked the fourth consecutive year that the number of people facing hunger increased to stage 3 (severe) according to the UN's Integrated Food Security (IPC) staging system – a tool for improving the analysis, assessment, and decision-making on food security.
Of the more than 258 million people facing famine, 108 million in five countries – the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Afghanistan, Nigeria, and Yemen – are experiencing Phase 3 of the IPC. Dr. Manenji Mangundu, Director of Oxfam South Sudan, stated that the famine in the region is so severe that girls as young as 11 are being forced into marriage in exchange for money from their families.
The conflict in Ukraine, climate change, and the negative economic impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic are the main causes of global hunger and the resulting global food crisis. Ukraine is considered the wheat granary of Europe. Somalia, one of the countries heavily affected by hunger, imports approximately 90% of its wheat from Ukraine. The conflict in Ukraine significantly reduced wheat exports, driving up food prices. The consequences of this conflict were further exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic, causing hunger in 27 countries and affecting 84 million people. Meanwhile, climate change also affected 57 million people in 12 countries.
Act early
According to Emily Farr, head of food security and economics at Oxfam, the recent famine was entirely avoidable if the international community had “really listened.” “Many organizations have been warning for years that this latest famine is part of a long-standing cycle of hunger and poverty,” Farr said.
To prevent further famine, experts are urging the international community to act quickly. This includes raising awareness among communities about adapting to climate change, which impacts food production; solutions to increase people's incomes; and support for peace initiatives. Experts also emphasize the need to address the root causes of food insecurity, such as the conflict in Ukraine.
“Addressing hunger may sound overwhelming, but we know what works to meet people’s immediate needs and get communities back on track for the future,” said Ms. Farr. “We need to provide food and money to those in need now to help them rebuild their livelihoods…” Having prevented the worst from happening in the present, we need to work with communities to prevent it from happening in the future.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called the report a scathing indictment of humanity's failure to meet the Millennium Development Goals' targets for reducing extreme poverty and hunger.
Source
Comment (0)