"Currently Just the Tip of the Iceberg"... WFP and FAO Warn of Imminent Food Crises Worldwide

"Up to 750,000 People Facing Severe Malnutrition or Starvation Crisis"

On the 8th of last month (local time), residents waiting to refill gas formed a long line in downtown Colombo, the capital of Sri Lanka, blocking traffic at nearby intersections. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Jung-wan] The United Nations agencies, the World Food Programme (WFP) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), have warned that a global food crisis is imminent.

According to the Associated Press, the two organizations jointly released a report on the 6th (local time) regarding the food crisis, pointing out that climate shocks such as droughts, along with the surge in food and energy prices caused by COVID-19 and the Ukraine war, are bringing the food crisis closer.

David Beasley, WFP Executive Director, expressed concern, saying, "The global food crisis threatens not only the 'poorest people' but also millions of households that were managing to get by." He added, "The current situation is worse than the 2011 'Arab Spring,' when 48 countries were paralyzed by political unrest, riots, and protests, or the 2007-2008 food price crisis." Beasley emphasized that the food crises currently occurring in Indonesia, Pakistan, Peru, and Sri Lanka are "just the tip of the iceberg."

WFP and FAO selected 20 countries where the hunger crisis is severe and urged urgent humanitarian aid for 'poverty risk areas' expected to experience extreme poverty in the coming months. Among these, six countries?Ethiopia, Nigeria, South Sudan, Yemen, Afghanistan, and Somalia?were classified as 'highest alert' zones facing disasters. The report explained that up to 750,000 people in these areas are facing severe malnutrition or starvation crises.

The two organizations diagnosed that the Russia-Ukraine war has exacerbated the global rise in food and energy prices. The report expressed concern that "(the impact of the Ukraine war) will be particularly severe in regions simultaneously experiencing reduced food production due to climate shocks such as droughts and floods, economic instability, and rising prices."

In this context, Charles Michel, President of the European Council, accused Russia at the United Nations Security Council meeting held that day of causing the global food crisis and driving people into poverty. According to the Associated Press, the Russian ambassador to the UN stormed out of the meeting in response.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.