By Emmanuel Nduka
Over 40 million people across West and Central Africa are currently struggling to access enough food, according to the United Nations (UN) food agency.
That number is expected to rise to 52 million by mid-2024, the UN predicts.
The World Food Program’s latest report, released on Friday, highlights that 3.4 million individuals in the region are facing “emergency levels of hunger,” marking a 70% increase since the summer. The report attributes this dire situation to ongoing conflict, economic instability, displacement, and severe climate shocks. The conflict in the Sahel and the civil war in Sudan have displaced more than 10 million people across the region, while catastrophic flooding in Nigeria and Chad earlier this year has worsened the crisis.
Despite the alarming statistics, the report revised down last year’s estimate of food insecurity by 7.7 million people, attributing the reduction to better-than-expected rainfall and minor improvements in security, though these gains are unlikely to be sustained.
The WFP predicts that nearly one in ten people in West and Central Africa will face food insecurity by next year. The region, which is home to over 500 million people according to the World Bank, will continue to see the effects of hunger at devastating levels.
Margot van der Velden, WFP’s regional director for Western Africa, emphasized that the cycle of hunger in the region could be broken through better planning and preparedness. “We need timely, flexible, and predictable funding to provide lifesaving assistance to those in crisis, alongside significant investments in preparedness, anticipatory action, and resilience-building to empower communities and reduce future humanitarian needs,” Van der Velden said.
