West Africa is facing the worst food crisis in history due to conflict, drought and the impact of the war in Ukraine on food prices and availability. About 27 million people in the region suffer from hunger, and by June this number could rise to 38 million, up 40% compared to last year and is a historical record.
Large swaths of West Africa, including parts of Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger and Nigeria, are host to Islamic insurgents who have forced millions of people to flee their lands. Along with Chad, these countries are the hardest hit by hunger. As a result of climate change, floods and droughts have also become more frequent in the region, which hinder the development of agriculture. According to the West Africa Food Crisis Prevention Network, grain production in 2021/22 fell by 39% in Niger and by 15% in Mali.
Consequences of the war in Ukraine
In addition, world food prices have skyrocketed and trade has been disrupted by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The Food Crisis Prevention Network says border closures due to COVID-19 have also had a negative impact.
“What’s new and what’s getting worse is primarily displaced people and land abandoned due to conflict, as well as new drivers,” said Assalama Davalak Sidi, Oxfam’s regional director for West and Central Africa.
According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), six West African countries import 30-50 percent. Your wheat from Russia and Ukraine. Sidi warns that a war in Ukraine could also divert much-needed funds from the region.
“Many donors have already said they could cut funding to Africa to pay for refugees in Europe,” she said.
US response
“The United States must increase food aid to avert starvation for millions as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine threatens the world’s grain supply,” members of a bipartisan U.S. Senate hunger group said.
Congress gave Ukraine $13 billion in aid on March 9, but $2.65 billion in food and other humanitarian aid is not enough to address the global food shortage.
They will be asking for billions more in any future COVID-19 bill or aid to Ukraine, a congressional staffer familiar with the plans said.
“Congressional Democrats and Republicans must quickly unite and approve emergency food aid around the world to prevent tens of millions of people from going hungry, including millions of children,” New Jersey Democrat Sen. Cory Booker told Reuters.
The United Nations World Food Program (WFP) has announced a $9 billion funding shortfall. According to the agency, before the invasion, 44 million people in 38 countries were on the verge of starvation. At present, the influx of refugees from Ukraine and the disruption of the spring sowing season in the country threaten to bring hunger in the world to a “catastrophic” level. Russia and Ukraine together account for about 25% of world wheat exports, and WFP receives about 50% of the goods from Ukraine.