More than 250 million people hit by severe food shortage in the world

Rome: A report by an international voluntary group says that more than 250 million people have been hit by severe food shortage, as a result of the continuing and intensifying conflicts around the world, economic crisis and natural calamities. The percentage is more in 8 Asian and African countries, including Yemen, Nigeria, Syria and Afghanistan. The report expresses fear that the situation will become more appalling in the year 2019 and the shortage of food grain will become more acute. At the same time, the report makes a shocking revelation that the food grain shortage is being used as a weapon.

The international organisation ‘Food Security Information Network’ released a report targeting the international draught situation, environmental changes and reducing food grain supply. The report named ‘Global Report on Food Crises’ is based on the study of situations in 95 countries. The report points out that, in 2018, 265 million people faced food grain shortage and starvation.

Continuing conflicts around the world, economic crisis and natural calamities are the factors responsible for this food shortage around the world. More than 70 million people in the world are facing a grim food shortage, because of the raging conflicts in their regions and 35 million of these, are from the African countries. The report notes that natural calamities like drought, floods and earthquakes are responsible for the starvation of nearly 35 million people. There is a special mention of the famine in Afghanistan in the report.

The report says that economic crises are responsible for insufficient food grain availability to more than 10 million people and the list includes African countries like Sudan, Zimbabwe and Burundi. It also highlights Yemen, DR Congo, Afghanistan, Ethiopia and Syria as countries worst hit by food shortage. The report expresses regret that there is a manmade shortage of food grain, in Yemen and nearly half the population is deprived of essential food grain and humanitarian aid.

In 2013, a fund of $ 18 billion was made available to tackle the shortage of food grain and the other humanitarian aid. Although the funding increased to $ 27 billion in 2017, the reports expressed regret that it has not been possible to tide over the fundamental problem of food grain shortage. The report warns that there is a need to ensure that food grain shortage is not used as a weapon in war, and the United Nations too, has taken a stand against it.