More than 66 million people in Horn of Africa face severe food insecurity – World

Conflict, inflation, extreme weather conditions and lack of access to nutritious food and clean water continue to severely affect the state of food security and nutrition in Eastern Africa, leaving some 66.7 million people in the Horn of Africa region facing severe food insecurity in June, according to a report.

The figure represents an 11 percent drop from 74.9 million in May, said the report released Wednesday by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and the Intergovernmental Authority on East African Development.

The report also finds that severe flooding has increased levels of food insecurity in countries such as Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia and South Sudan, which were already recovering from the lingering effects of previous droughts.

In Kenya, the Kenyan Red Cross estimates that floods in April destroyed about 16,000 hectares of cropland, heightening concerns about agricultural production.

In addition, the floods have severely disrupted agricultural production. Flood damage is expected to disrupt the transportation network and agricultural production, which will impact the prices of goods and services.

In Tanzania, floods have claimed lives and decimated thousands of farmlands, and the Prime Minister’s Office’s Disaster Management Department estimates that food production could fall by 30%.

While the majority of Tanzania’s population depends on agriculture and livestock, incessant flooding has exacerbated food insecurity in the country.

In its Food Security Report released on April 25, the World Bank said food price inflation remains high in low- and middle-income countries, particularly in East Africa. The situation is expected to worsen following natural disasters such as the floods that have hit the region.

The update also indicates that domestic food price inflation, measured by the annual change in the food component of a country’s consumer price index, will remain elevated.

“In Eastern and Southern Africa, food insecurity, including famine, continues to increase due to ongoing conflicts and extreme weather events. An estimated 75 million people will be food insecure by October 2024,” the report said.

The World Bank fears that the floods will significantly reduce the ability to increase maize production in a region already facing a shortage.

Refugee Crisis

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations said the East and Central Africa region also hosts significant numbers of refugees and internally displaced people, particularly in countries such as Ethiopia, Kenya and Uganda, where populations are struggling with food insecurity due to restricted access to essential resources and limited livelihood opportunities.

To help alleviate food insecurity in the region, the Intergovernmental Authority on East African Development said it is providing technical support to countries in the sub-region to identify food security gaps at the policy, strategic, legal, institutional and technical levels to better inform subsequent interventions and investments in these areas.

Xinhua contributed to this article.