Conflict-driven hunger worsens, according to a report released by FAO and WFP

The situation in the eight places in the world with the highest number of people in need of emergency food support shows that the link between conflict and hunger remains all too persistent and deadly, according to a new report released  by the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Food Programme (WFP).

The situation in Afghanistan, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, South Sudan, and Yemen worsened in the latter part of 2018 largely because of conflict, while Somalia, Syria and the Lake Chad Basin have seen some improvements in line with improved security. In total, around 56 million people are in need of urgent food and livelihood assistance across the eight conflict zones.

“This report clearly demonstrates the impact of armed violence on the lives and livelihoods of millions of men, women, boys, and girls caught up in conflict,” FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva states in the report foreword. “I would strongly encourage you to keep in mind that behind these seemingly dry statistics are real people experiencing rates of hunger that are simply unacceptable in the 21st century.”

Violence against humanitarian workers is growing, the report states, sometimes forcing organizations to suspend operations and deprive vulnerable populations of humanitarian assistance.

“This report shows again the tragic link between conflict and hunger and how it still pervades far too much of the world. We need better and quicker access in all conflict zones, so we can get to more of the civilians who need our help. But what the world needs most of all is an end to the wars,” the World Food Programme Executive DirectorDavid Beasley states in the foreword.

Unprecedented and unacceptable hunger

The growing number of protracted conflicts in the world is creating unprecedented and unacceptable levels of hunger.

Yemen’s three-year war is a stark demonstration of the urgent need for a cessation of hostilities to address the world’s largest food security emergency.

In the second half of 2018, the Democratic Republic of the Congo had the second highest number (13 million) of acutely food insecure people, driven by a rise in armed conflict.

In South Sudan, where civil strife has persisted for more than five years, the lean season is expected to start earlier than normal, according to the report, pushing those in need of urgent support up to more than 5 million between January and March 2019.

Across the Lake Chad basin including north-eastern Nigeria, Chad’s Lac region and Niger’s Diffa, where Boko Haram militants are active, a major deterioration in food security is projected during this year’s lean season (June-August 2019), and 3 million people are expected to face acute food insecurity.

In Afghanistan, the percentage of rural Afghans facing acute food deficits is projected to reach 47 percent (or 10.6 million people) by March if urgent life-saving assistance is not provided.

The report’s aim is to provide UN Security Council members with up-to-date food insecurity information and to reinforce the urgent need to target efforts towards resolving conflict in order to end hunger. It is part of a wider effort by FAO, WFP, the European Union and other partners to monitor and analyse global food crises in order to provide coordinated and timely information and responses.

Read and download the report:  Monitoring food security in countries with conflict situations.

Original source: FAO
Published on 28 January 2019