Page 16 - AWA Vol.37 No.4

FOOD PRODUCTS & PROCESSING EQUPMENT

ACUTE FOOD INSECURITY SOARS TO FIVE-YEAR

HIGH WARNS GLOBAL REPORT ON FOOD CRISES

The number of people facing acute security (IPC/CH Phase 3-5) increased transformation of our agri-food systems
food insecurity and needing urgent life from 94 to 147 million people between is needed to achieve the Sustainable
and livelihood-saving assistance has 2016 and 2020. Development Goals.”
hit a five-year high in 2020 in countries Additionally, in the 55 food-crisis “The protracted nature of most food
beset by food crises, an annual report countries/territories covered by the crises shows that long-term environ-
launched today by the Global Network report, over 75 million children under mental, social and economic trends
Against Food Crises (GNAFC) - an in- five were stunted (too short) and over compounded by increasing conflict and
ternational alliance of the UN, the EU, 15 million wasted (too thin) in 2020. insecurity are eroding the resilience of
governmental and non-governmental Countries in Africa remained dis- agri-food systems. If current trends are
agencies working to tackle food crises proportionally affected by acute food not reversed, food crises will increase
together - has found. insecurity. Close to 98 million people in frequency and severity”.
The stark warning from the 2021 facing acute food insecurity in 2020 - or To address these challenges the
Global Report on Food Crises reveals two out of three - were on the African Global Network will step up efforts to
that conflict, or economic shocks that continent. But other parts of the world promote resilient agri-food systems that
are often related to COVID-19 along have also not been spared, with coun- are socially, environmentally and eco-
with extreme weather, are continuing tries including Yemen, Afghanistan, nomically sustainable, and will support
to push millions of people into acute Syria and Haiti among the ten worst major events this year such as the UN
food insecurity. food crises last year. Food Systems Summit, the Convention
The key drivers behind rising acute on Biodiversity, the G20 Summit, the
food insecurity in 2020 were: Climate Change Conference, and the
• Conflict (main driver pushing al- Nutrition for Growth Summit. It will
also cooperate with the G7 initiative
most 100 million people into acute food to avert famine.
insecurity, up from 77 million in 2019);
The Global Network emphasises the
• Economic shocks - often due to need to act urgently and decisively, and
COVID-19 - replaced weather events calls for the international community
as the second driver of acute food in- to mobilise against hunger.
security both in terms of numbers of
people and countries affected (over 40
million people in 17 countries/territo-
ries, up from 24 million and 8countries
Report’s key findings: in 2019); and,
The Global Network Against Food • Weather extremes (over 15 million
Crises report reveals that at least 155 people, down from 34 million).
million people experienced acute food While conflict will remain the major
insecurity at Crisis or worse levels driver of food crises in 2021, COVID-19
(IPC/CH Phase 3-5) across 55 coun- and related containment measures and
tries/territories in 2020 - an increase weather extremes will continue to exac-
of around 20 million people from the erbate acute food insecurity in fragile
previous year, and raises a stark warn- economies.
ing about a worrisome trend: acute food Message from the UN
insecurity has kept up its relentless Statement from the
rise since 2017 - the first edition of the Secretary-General:
report. Global Network Against “Conflict and hunger are mutually
Of these, around 133 000 people were Food Crises: reinforcing. We need to tackle hunger
classified in the most severe phase of “One year after the declaration of and conflict together to solve either...
acute food insecurity in 2020 - Catastro- the COVID-19 pandemic, the outlook We must do everything we can to end
phe (IPC/CH Phase 5) - in Burkina Faso, for 2021 and beyond is grim. Conflict, this vicious cycle. Addressing hunger
South Sudan and Yemen where urgent pandemic-related restrictions fuelling is a foundation for stability and peace,”
action was needed to avert widespread economic hardship and the persistent said António Guterres, Secretary-Gen-
death and a collapse of livelihoods. threat of adverse weather conditions eral of the United Nations, in the fore-
word of the report.
At least another 28 million people will likely continue driving food cri-
faced Emergency (IPC/CH Phase 4) ses,” said the European Union (EU), the In March 2021, Guterres established
level of acute food insecurity in 2020 Food and Agriculture Organization of a High-Level Task Force on Prevent-
- meaning they were one step away the United Nations (FAO), the United ing Famine, led by the Under-Secre-
from starvation - across 38 countries/ Nations World Food Programme (WFP) tary-General for Humanitarian Affairs
territories where urgent action saved - founding members of the Global Net- and Emergency Relief Coordinator,
lives and livelihoods, and prevented work - together with USAID in a joint Mark Lowcock, along with FAO and
famine spreading. statement released with the report. WFP and with the support of OCHA
Thirty-nine (39) countries/territories “The COVID-19 pandemic has re- and other UN agencies as well as NGO
partners. The Task Force aims to bring
have experienced food crises during vealed the fragility of the global food coordinated, high-level attention to
the five years that the GNAFC has been system and the need for more equita- famine prevention and mobilise sup-
publishing its annual report; in these ble, sustainable and resilient systems port to the most affected countries.
countries/territories, the population af- to nutritiously and consistently feed
fected by high levels of acute food in- 8.5 billion people by 2030. A radical
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14 Vol. 37 No. 4