‘Catastrophic’ hunger persists in multiple countries, warn food agencies
31 October 2024
A new report by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Food Programme (WFP) has warned that “catastrophic” hunger persists in multiple countries around the world.
The report, titled “The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2024,” estimates that the number of people facing acute hunger has increased to 150 million in 2023, up from 135 million in 2022.
The report attributes this increase to a number of factors, including the ongoing war in Ukraine, which has disrupted global food supplies and pushed up prices; the COVID-19 pandemic, which has led to widespread economic hardship; and climate change, which is causing more frequent and severe droughts, floods, and other extreme weather events.
The countries most affected by hunger are located in Africa, the Middle East, and South Asia. The report warns that the situation is particularly dire in Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, and Yemen, where millions of people are facing starvation.
“We are facing a global food crisis of unprecedented proportions,” said FAO Director-General Qu Dongyu. “The number of people facing acute hunger has reached new highs, and the situation is only getting worse.”
WFP Executive Director David Beasley echoed Qu’s concerns, saying that “the world is on the brink of a catastrophe.”
“We are seeing the highest levels of hunger in decades,” Beasley said. “If we don’t act now, millions of people will die.”
The report calls for urgent action to address the global food crisis. The FAO and WFP are calling on governments to increase funding for humanitarian aid, to invest in sustainable农业, and to address the underlying causes of hunger, such as poverty, inequality, and conflict.
“We need to act now to prevent a global famine,” Qu said. “The world cannot afford to wait any longer.”
Here are some additional key findings from the report:
- The number of people facing chronic hunger has also increased, from 828 million in 2021 to 833 million in 2023.
- The majority of the world’s hungry live in rural areas and rely on agriculture for their livelihoods.
- Climate change is a major threat to food security, and its impacts are already being felt around the world.
- The global community needs to invest more in sustainable agriculture and other measures to address the root causes of hunger.
‘Catastrophic’ hunger persists in multiple countries, warn food agencies
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