FAO, WFP warn of looming food crisis as hunger threatens stability in countries

The impact of economic instability and spiraling prices could be especially severe in climate-shock prone areas.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) have issued a stark warning of multiple looming food crises, driven by conflict, climate shocks, the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic, and massive public debt burdens.
Food and fuel prices have risen in many countries due to the ripple effects of the war in Ukraine, said a press release on Tuesday.
The “Hunger Hotspots – FAO-WFP early warnings on acute food insecurity” report issued on Tuesday calls for urgent humanitarian action in 20 “hunger hotspots” where acute hunger is expected to worsen from June-September 2022 – to save lives and livelihoods, and to prevent famine.
The report warns that the war in Ukraine has exacerbated the steadily rising food and energy prices worldwide, affecting economic stability across all regions.
The impact of economic instability and spiraling prices could be especially severe where the effects of climate shocks, like recurrent droughts or flooding, combine with drops in food production.
FAO Director-General QU Dongyu said: “We are deeply concerned about the combined impacts of overlapping crises jeopardizing people’s ability to produce and access foods, pushing millions more into extreme levels of acute food insecurity.
We are in a race against time to help farmers in the most affected countries, including by rapidly increasing potential food production and boosting their resilience in the face of challenges”.
WFP Executive Director David Beasley noted: “We’re facing a perfect storm that is not just going to hurt the poorest of the poor - it’s also going to overwhelm millions of families who until now have just about kept their heads above water.”
He added: “Conditions now are much worse than during the Arab Spring in 2011 and 2007-2008 food price crisis, when 48 countries were rocked by political unrest, riots, and protests. We’ve already seen what’s happening in Indonesia, Pakistan, Peru, and Sri Lanka – that’s just the tip of the iceberg. We have solutions. But we need to act, and act fast.”