WORLD LEADERS URGED TO HALT ESCALATING HUNGER CRISIS AS 17% MORE PEOPLE EXPECTED TO NEED LIFE-SAVING AID IN 2022

A group of 120 non-governmental organisations has joined forces in an open letter calling on world leaders to do more to halt a devastating global hunger crisis as new analysis shows the number of people likely to be in need of humanitarian aid in 2022 could rise by 17%.

The Global Humanitarian Overview 2022,¹ released today by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), warned that 274 million people could be in need of humanitarian assistance next year, with the world currently battling the worst hunger crisis this century. This is up from 235 million people in 2021 and 168 million in 2020.

One of the main causes of humanitarian need is food insecurity with the number of people at risk of famine rising 60% since before the COVID-19 pandemic. Currently, an estimated 45 million people across 43 countries are at risk of famine, up from² 27 million in 2019.

Save the Children joined peer organisations – including nearly 100 locally-based organisations in countries hard-hit by hunger – in an open letter calling on world leaders to fully fund a $41 billion humanitarian hunger response to prevent famine globally and address the emergencies fuelling global hunger: conflict, the climate crisis, and the COVID-19 pandemic.

Hunger and malnutrition disproportionately affect women and girls, putting them at increased risk of extreme hunger and gender-based violence. Children are amongst the most at risk- severe malnutrition affects over 45 million children globally, which is the cause of about 45% of deaths of children aged under 5.

Mike Bonke, Action Against Hunger's Country Director in Afghanistan, says:

“In over 15 years working in the aid sector, I can’t remember the humanitarian situation looking so bleak. The threat of famine looms large in several countries and yet it feels like world leaders are watching from the stands.

“In Afghanistan, we already have waiting lists in some of our malnutrition wards and this situation is only going to get worse as winter sets in and food supplies dwindle. The needs on the ground remain astronomical and I predict  a very tough winter ahead."

And Tatiana Dasy, Save the Children’s programme director for Madagascar, says:

“In southern Madagascar, the spectre of hunger haunts you everywhere you turn. Parents are surviving on next to nothing and are selling everything they can just to feed their children a portion of sweet potatoes or rice. Sometimes, when they have nothing to eat, families pick leaves and cactus fruit or go to bed without having a meal. On days when children don’t have food on their plates, some of them play a game cooking with sand, soil and leaves, pretending it’s food.

“This is Madagascar’s worst hunger crisis in 40 years. The UN is calling it the world’s first ‘climate change famine’ and with the climate crisis intensifying, it is only likely to get worse. Nobody should have to live like this, especially in the 21^st century, and especially children.

“But the new UN report out today tells us the horrifying situation in Madagascar is unfortunately not unique. We are in the midst of an escalating global hunger crisis that shows how urgently the world needs to act. Humanitarian agencies have only received half the funding needed to stave off famine in Madagascar and five other countries of highest concern. This is shameful and unconscionable and world leaders need to act now to pull the people of Madagascar back from the brink and ensure our children have a future.”

Notes to the Editor:

[1] The Global Humanitarian Overview 2022 report will be available once the embargo on it lifts at 6:00 am CET on Thursday, Dec. 2, 2021 at https://gho.unocha.org/. 

[2] Figures reported by the World Food Programme can be found here: https://www.wfp.org/stories/45-million-people-are-famines-door

The open letter and a full list of signatory agencies is available here.

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