The world is facing multiple famines of "biblical proportions" in just a
matter of months, the UN has said, warning that the coronavirus
pandemic will push an additional 130 million people to the brink of
starvation.
Famines could take hold in "about three dozen
countries" in a worst-case scenario, the executive director of the World
Food Programme (WFP) said in a stark address on Tuesday. Ten of those
countries already have more than 1 million people on the verge of
starvation, he said.
He cited conflict, an economic recession, a
decline in aid and a collapse in oil prices as factors likely to lead to
vast food shortages, and urged swift action to avert disaster.
"While
dealing with a Covid-19 pandemic, we are also on the brink of a hunger
pandemic," David Beasley told the UN's security council. "There is also a
real danger that more people could potentially die from the economic
impact of Covid-19 than from the virus itself."
The WFP had
already warned that 2020 would be a devastating year for numerous
countries ravaged by poverty or war, with 135 million people facing
crisis levels of hunger or worse. Their updated projections nearly
double that number.
When added to the 821 million people already
chronically hungry, that scenario would push more than 1 billion people
into dire situations.
The agency identified 55 countries most at risk
of being plunged into famine in its annual report on food crises,
released this week, warning that their fragile healthcare systems will
be unable to cope with the impact of the virus. " These countries may
face an excruciating trade-off between saving lives or livelihoods or,
in a worst-case scenario, saving people from the coronavirus to have
them die from hunger ", the report said.
Ten countries
were singled out as particularly at-risk, after housing the worst food
crises last year; Yemen, the Democratic Republic of the Congo,
Afghanistan, Venezuela, Ethiopia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Nigeria and
Haiti.
Most of those countries have so far been spared the
worst of the coronavirus pandemic, with the epicenter moving from China
to Europe to North America, but the state of their healthcare
institutions means even relatively small outbreaks could be devastating.
To date, more than 2.5 million cases of the coronavirus have been
confirmed globally.
'We do not have time on our side'
Even
before the outbreak of the coronavirus, food supplies in some of the
most vulnerable regions in the world were being directly affected by
impacts such as crop failures and locust swarms.
Exceptional
drought followed by extremely heavy rainfall markedly decreased the
seasonal crop yield in the Horn of Africa during 2019. These irregular
weather and climate patterns also contributed to the worst desert locust invasion in 25 years, which further threatened the crop supply in the region.
Meanwhile,
the combination of conflict, climate-related shocks and crop pests had
resulted in the world's worst food crisis in Yemen, according to the
agency.
The
new, coronavirus-related factors affecting each region were myriad.
"Lockdowns and economic recession are expected to lead to a major loss
of income among the working poor," Beasley said. Overseas remittances
will also drop sharply, affecting countries such as Haiti, Nepal, and
Somalia, for example.
"The loss of tourism receipts will
damage countries such as Ethiopia (and) the collapsing oil prices in
lower-income countries like South Sudan will have an impact
significantly," he added.
He appealed to UN member states to
act now, telling them: "There are no famines yet. But I must warn you
that if we don't prepare and act now -- to secure access, avoid funding
shortfalls and disruptions to trade -- we could be facing multiple
famines of biblical proportions within a short few months.
"The
truth is, we do not have time on our side, so let's act wisely -- and
let's act fast," he added. "I do believe that with our expertise and
partnerships, we can bring together the teams and the programs necessary
to make certain the Covid-19 pandemic does not become a humanitarian
and food crisis catastrophe.
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Wednesday, April 22, 2020
COVID-19: UN Warns Of Global Famines Of 'Biblical Proportions', Nigeria Included
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