UN warns hunger is expected to rise in 23 global hotspots

Source: The Hindu

What is the News?

The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and World Food Program(WFP) has released a new report titled “Hunger Hotspots”.

About Hunger Hotspots Report:

• The Hunger Hotspots Report is an early-warning analysis of countries and situations called hotspots where acute food insecurity is likely to deteriorate over the coming months.

Key Findings of the Report:

• Hunger is expected to rise in 23 global hotspot countries in the next three months.
• The highest alerts for “catastrophic” situations are in Ethiopia’s Tigray region, southern Madagascar, Yemen, South Sudan and northern Nigeria.
  • Note: India is not one of the Hotspot countries.
• Overall, over 41 million people worldwide are at risk of falling into famine or famine-like conditions unless they receive immediate life and livelihood-saving assistance.
• The primary reasons for an increase in hunger are conflict dynamics, economic shocks, the socio-economic impacts of COVID- 19, weather extremes and the diffusion of plant pests and animal diseases.

Note: The Global Food Crises Report released in May 2021 has already warned that 40.5 million people in 17 countries are facing acute food insecurity because of “economic shocks”.