Africa: Intensification of famine in Sahel

The number of people starving in Sahel region included states of Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania and Niger over the past three years has risen from 3.5 to10.5 million.

 Sahel is facing a terrible food crisis, the head of the UN emergency food aid warned on Wednesday that the number of people on the brink of famine has increased "almost tenfold" over the past three years.

Insecurity, poverty caused by COVID-19, dramatic increases in food costs and other compounding factors have put this region on a path where the crisis has become a trans-regional issue.

Most families have been driven out of their homes by extremist groups, starved by drought, and living in utter despair over the improvement of the current situation due to the long-term economic consequences of the COVID-19.

The World Food Program estimates that the Food and Agriculture Organization (UNFPA) will need $ 470 million over the next six months to continue its relief operations in the region. According to available sources, the World Food Program is forced to halve its diet.

The organization also said that while needs are extremely high, resources to support the vulnerable are at their lowest.

 

_{Source and Credit: AP, UNnews}