COVID-19 impacts driving up acute hunger in countries already in food crisis
16.09.2020 14:20 "Agro Perspectiva" (Kyiv) —
The Global Network Against Food Crises (GNAFC) held a high-level event to present a review of the most recent global data available on how the knock-on effects of the COVID-19 pandemic are driving up acute hunger in vulnerable countries that were already wracked by food crises even before the novel coronavirus arrived on the scene. The meeting was also important for international resource partners and relevant actors to discuss emerging priorities, financing and programming implications in light of COVID-19.New data related to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, for example, reveal that the central African nation has now become the world’s largest food crisis in terms of absolute numbers of the acutely food-insecure - a staggering 21.8 million people. This, as the impacts of COVID-19 related control measures aggravated pre-existing hunger drivers in the country: insecurity and armed conflict, an extended economic slump, and heavy rains and flooding. The Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organization, QU Dongyu, told the event, convened on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, that it was critical to work together before the situation deteriorates and, focusing on prevention and early warning systems and actions. Qu also highlighted the importance of data collection and «global differentiation», which are the basis of FAO’s Hand-in-Hand, an initiative aimed at partnering developed countries with those most in need to accelerate agri-food system transformation and sustainable rural development. He noted that the Hand-in-Hand Initiative includes the recently-launched Geospatial Platform for data collection. To support countries and farmers to address persistent challenges related to food and agriculture and build back better from the pandemic, FAO has also launched the comprehensive FAO COVID-19 Response and Recovery Programme, which aims to mitigate the immediate impacts of the pandemic while strengthening the long-term resilience of food systems and livelihoods. Supporting the most vulnerable people, by promoting economic inclusion and social protection and boosting smallholder resilience, is among the top priorities. Mark Lowcock, the United Nations’ Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, told the high-level side event that the current food crisis was the biggest the world had seen for 50 years but stressed that it was not too late to act to prevent acute hunger from becoming a long-lasting problem. The EU Commissioners for Crisis Management, Janez Lenarčič, and for International Partnerships, Jutta Urpilainen, called for stronger coordination among humanitarian and development actors, and ensured the commitment of the European Union to strengthen the GNAFC. Additional speakers today included Nick Dyer, United Kingdom’s Special Envoy for Famine Prevention and Humanitarian Affairs; Jenny McGee, Associate Administrator for Relief, Response and Resilience of the United States Agency for International Development; Peter Eriksson, Sweden’s Minister for International Development Cooperation; Djimé Adoum, CILSS Executive Secretary; WFP Assistant Executive Director Valerie Guarneri; and Susanna Moorehead, Chair of the OECD’s Development Assistance Committee. Hunger hotspots continue to heat up In addition to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the worst deteriorations in acute hunger in recent months have taken place in Burkina Faso - which has witnessed a nearly 300 percent uptick in the overall number of people experiencing acute hunger since the start of 2020 - as well as Nigeria, Somalia and the Sudan, according to a synthesis report presented today by the Global Network. The report provides an update on the 55 countries that were identified by the Network in early 2020 as already being in food crises as of late 2019. Large increases in the overall number of acutely hungry people have been registered in northern Nigeria (a 73 percent increase, to 8.7 million people), Somalia (67 percent increase, to 3.5 million people) and the Sudan (64 percent increase, to 9.6 million people, or nearly a quarter of the country’s population). In terms of the prevalence of acute food insecurity among a country’s population, four countries (Central African Republic, Honduras, Lesotho and Somalia) have experienced an increase of more than 10 percentage points in the share of people facing acute hunger. In the Central African Republic, for example, today half the total population is so food insecure that they require urgent assistance. The acute hunger situation is also deteriorating in Eswatini, Haiti and Honduras, today’s report said. Participants in today’s event stressed that these trends underscore the importance not only of maintaining humanitarian assistance to meet these needs, but the longer-term imperative of building more resilient food systems. The Global Network Against Food Crises was founded in 2016 by the European Union, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), and the World Food Programme (WFP). It seeks to better link, integrate and guide existing initiatives, partnerships, programmes and policy processes to sustainably address the root causes of food crises Acute food insecurity, or acute hunger, is when a person’s inability to consume adequate food puts their lives or livelihoods in immediate danger. It is a metric that draws on internationally accepted measures of extreme hunger, such as the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) and the Cadre Harmonisé. People can slide into acute hunger rapidly as a result of sudden shocks. Chronic hunger, as reported on each year by the UN’s annual State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World report, is a different metric. It refers to when a person is unable to consume enough food over an extended period to maintain a normal, active lifestyle.
26.07.2024 |
|
|
|
|
|
09:28 |
Ongoing Economic Crisis in Argentina Impacts Dairy |
15.07.2024 |
|
|
|
|
|
10:28 |
Decline of China Pork Imports Continues in 2024 |
|
08:20 |
Lower Prices Propel Mexico 2023/24 Soybean Meal Imports |
13.07.2024 |
|
|
|
|
|
10:15 |
China Imports of Major Feed Grains at Record for Oct-May period |
12.07.2024 |
|
|
|
|
|
01:08 |
Climate risks projected to affect fish biomass around the world's ocean, FAO report says |
06.07.2024 |
|
|
|
|
|
10:15 |
Global cereal production 2024 forecast scaled up and now set to exceed the 2023 level |
|
10:01 |
FAO Food Price Index stable in June |
03.07.2024 |
|
|
|
|
|
12:31 |
World pear production for MY 2023/24 is projected up more than 275,000 tons to 25.2 million |
|
12:23 |
U.S. wheat exports are forecast to rebound by more than a million tons in the 2024/25 marketing year |
01.07.2024 |
|
|
|
|
|
08:58 |
World apple production for MY 2023/24 is forecast to rise more than 700,000 tons to 83.7 million |
|
08:39 |
World coffee production for 2024/25 is forecast to rebound 7.1 million bags |
25.06.2024 |
|
|
|
|
|
17:57 |
Central, Eastern and South-Eastern European banks report strengthening loan demand and improving profitability |
|
17:05 |
Global Environment Facility approves $70 million to support FAO projects in 28 countries |
24.06.2024 |
|
|
|
|
|
04:15 |
Emergency brake triggered for oat imports from Ukraine |
23.06.2024 |
|
|
|
|
|
09:00 |
Colombia Production: Two Periods of Sharp Decline |
19.06.2024 |
|
|
|
|
|
15:35 |
World pear production for MY 2023/24 is projected up more than 275,000 tons to 25.2 million |
|
10:35 |
India Apple Imports Forecast at a Record High |
12.06.2024 |
|
|
|
|
|
09:21 |
FAO Food Price Index slightly up in May: higher cereal and dairy prices offset easing sugar and vegetable oil quotations |
03.06.2024 |
|
|
|
|
|
14:04 |
Commission clarifies support for farmers in case of exceptional weather events |
|
13:33 |
Digitalization: it is time to bridge the gap between urban and rural areas |
22.05.2024 |
|
|
|
|
|
18:25 |
Two years of Solidarity Lanes have brought the EU, Ukraine and Moldova closer together |
21.05.2024 |
|
|
|
|
|
08:10 |
Seven additional private sector leaders announce support for Antimicrobial Use Stewardship Principles in poultry, now includes over 40% of global poultry meat production |
13.05.2024 |
|
|
|
|
|
23:32 |
EU extends trade support to Ukraine for one more year |
|
04:36 |
European Union corn is forecast at 18.0 million tons |
11.05.2024 |
|
|
|
|
|
18:55 |
2024/25 Grain Consumption Expands while Trade Moderates |
|
18:47 |
Oilseeds Stocks Forecast to Reach Record Highs in 2024/25 |
06.05.2024 |
|
|
|
|
|
09:17 |
The International Year of the Woman Farmer in 2026 Approved by the UN General Assembly, it will increase awareness of the crucial role women farmers play in agrifood systems |
04.05.2024 |
|
|
|
|
|
08:10 |
2024 wheat forecast trimmed |
03.05.2024 |
|
|
|
|
|
21:25 |
Rising international quotations for meat, cereals and vegetable oils offset drops for dairy and sugar |
|
07:10 |
El Niño and La Niña: four crucial steps to build climate resilience |
01.05.2024 |
|
|
|
|
|
08:25 |
Acute hunger remains persistently high in 59 countries with 1 in 5 people assessed in need of critical urgent action |
29.04.2024 |
|
|
|
|
|
10:43 |
New CEO at BASF: Martin Brudermüller hands over to Markus Kamieth |
25.04.2024 |
|
|
|
|
|
09:45 |
Parliament approves a revision of the EU’s common agricultural policy |
23.04.2024 |
|
|
|
|
|
16:23 |
MEPs approve trade support measures for Ukraine with protection for EU farmers |
17.04.2024 |
|
|
|
|
|
18:08 |
Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food predicts this year’s harvest of grains and oilseeds at about 74 million tonnes |
16.04.2024 |
|
|
|
|
|
12:12 |
West Africa Cocoa Shortage Pushes Up Prices |
11.04.2024 |
|
|
|
|
|
23:48 |
U.S. Soybean Meal Exports Forecast at Consecutive Records in 2022/23 and 2023/24 |
|
23:10 |
EU Wheat Exports Challenged by Russia’s Growing Dominance |
|
11:30 |
Country of origin of honey must be clearly visible on the label. EU honey traceability system to be developed |
10.04.2024 |
|
|
|
|
|
15:59 |
Commission starts setting up the Agriculture and Food Chain Observatory |
|
15:33 |
Commission approves ˆ2.2 billion German State aid scheme to support the decarbonisation of industrial processes to foster the transition to a net-zero economy |
|
13:17 |
Donau Soja urges EU for clarity on EUDR implementation |
09.04.2024 |
|
|
|
|
|
10:44 |
Ukraine remained the third source of EU imports in 2023, with a value of EUR 11.8 billion |
06.04.2024 |
|
|
|
|
|
10:04 |
World cereal output seen up in 2023/24 |
|
09:55 |
FAO Food Price Index rises in March |
05.04.2024 |
|
|
|
|
|
10:04 |
Shellfish Crop Insurance Program Offers Oyster Producers Needed Protection from Environmental Challenges and More |
03.04.2024 |
|
|
|
|
|
23:01 |
Croatian horseradish root ‘Ludbreški hren' added to register of Protected Designations of Origin |
02.04.2024 |
|
|
|
|
|
10:15 |
FAO and chef Fatmata Binta announce new project to empower women fonio producers in Ghana |
28.03.2024 |
|
|
|
|
|
12:55 |
Council compromise on Ukraine ATMs – Only a half step forward in the right direction |
|
09:18 |
Commission approves amendment to Italian State aid scheme to support companies in Friuli Venezia Giulia in the context of Russia's war against Ukraine |
Also available:
|