Hunger in the world worsened terribly in 2020, due to a combination of factors, and with six times more people than in 2019 "
in conditions close to famine
", according to a report by 'Oxfam published Friday July 9.
They are now more than half a million in the world to be in this case.
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In total, 155 million people are now in a food crisis situation, that is to say exposed to difficulties in accessing food, according to this report.
This is "
the equivalent of the population of France, Germany and Belgium combined
", and it is 20 million more than in 2019.
In question, the “
explosive cocktail of the three Cs
”, namely “
conflicts, Covid-19 and climate change
”, which could, “
without immediate action
”, by the end of the year, kill hunger 11 people per minute, a rate "
higher than the current death rate due to the pandemic, which is seven people per minute
", according to the NGO.
However, conflict remains "
the main cause of hunger since the pandemic, pushing more than half a million people into conditions close to famine, six times more
" than in 2019, says Oxfam.
Among the hot spots of extreme hunger identified, Afghanistan, Yemen, the Sahelian region of West Africa, South Sudan and Venezuela, in particular, saw their situation worsen further in 2020.
The "
superposition of crises
" leads to famines in the world
"
Today we are witnessing a superposition of crises: incessant conflicts, economic consequences of Covid-19 and a panicking climate crisis, all of these events have pushed more than 520,000 people into a catastrophic situation of famine
", declares Hélène Botreau , food security and agriculture advocacy officer at Oxfam France, quoted in a press release. Of the 155 million people in a food crisis, two in three live in a country at war or conflict.
Added to this was the “
massive impact
” of economic shocks, “
exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic, and the worsening climate crisis, plunging tens of millions more into hunger
”.
"
Mass unemployment and severely disrupted food production have led to a 40% rise in global food prices, the largest increase in more than a decade
," Oxfam recalls.
Read also: Syria: "The risk of famine is very real"
The NGO asks governments in particular to "
fully fund the humanitarian appeal of the United Nations and support a global fund dedicated to social protection
", as well as "to
guarantee humanitarian access in conflict zones and no longer use hunger as a weapon of war
”. The United Nations Agency for Agriculture and Food is also due to publish a report on the state of food security in the world on Monday.