Famine has been declared in some counties of South Sudan, and the number of people close to sliding from emergency to disaster is perilously high in Northeastern Nigeria, Somalia and Yemen, FAO and other UN agencies warned.
According to a press release published by the Representation of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in Iran, Governments, civic groups and businesses need to rally support for both immediate relief to people in countries at risk of famine and longer-term initiatives that will allow them to recover and restore their livelihoods, Ambassador Amira Gornass, Chair of the Committee on World Food Security (CFS), said.
Some 30 million people in the four countries are uncertain where their next meal will come from or are reliant on humanitarian assistance.
"I urge you to take action now to relieve the impending suffering and to prevent further damage to livelihoods," Ambassador Gornass wrote in a letter to CFS Members and stakeholders, as well as the international community at large, to step up their response to the crises in the four countries.
CFS is an intergovernmental body aimed at achieving a world free of hunger. Its inclusive platform is structured to allow participants from civil society, the private sector and other non-state actors, especially the food insecure, to have a voice in discussions.
The risk of famine in all four countries is mostly induced by conflict, which has disrupted food production, blocked aid and commodities from accessing vulnerable communities and driven food prices beyond what people can afford.
The Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC), the primary mechanism for the coordination of humanitarian assistance, emergency and relief responses, can meet immediate needs if adequately funded, Ambassador Gornass wrote, reiterating calls made by UN Secretary-General, António Guterres.
YNG/PR