Number Of People Facing High Risk Of Acute Malnutrition Rises To 1.9 Mln: Report

LONDON, Sept 6 (Bernama-Anadolu) -- The number of people facing or projected to face an extreme lack of food with a significantly increased risk of acute malnutrition and death, has more than doubled in 2024, rising to 1.9 million, Anadolu Agency quoted a report released on Thursday.

The number of people facing or at risk of "Catastrophe" totalled 705,000 last year and has risen to 1.9 million in 2024, according to the Global Report on Food Crises (GRFC).

The report was released by the Global Network Against Food Crisis.

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"This is the highest figure recorded in GRFC reporting, driven by conflict in the Gaza Strip and the Sudan," it noted.

According to the report's criteria, in the Catastrophe category, household members experience an extreme lack of food and exhaustion of coping capacities, with a significantly increased risk of acute malnutrition and death.

It revealed that the Gaza Strip continues to experience the most severe food crisis in the history of the GRFC, with all 2.2 million residents still in urgent need of food and livelihood assistance between March and April 2024.

"The severity of the crisis has intensified, with half of the population in Catastrophe (IPC Phase 5) during this period, up from a quarter in December 2023 to February 2024,"  the report stated.

It noted that in Sudan, famine is ongoing and is expected to persist through October 2024.

"Many other areas throughout the country are at risk of famine, but insufficient data inhibited analysis for many hard-to-reach areas," the report said, adding that 25.6 million people in Sudan are estimated to face high levels of acute food insecurity during the June–September lean season, a 26 per cent increase from the same period last year.

"The conflict has also had severe implications on regional food and nutrition security, with more than 2 million people forced to flee to neighbouring countries, mainly to major food-crisis countries including Chad and South Sudan." 

 The report also highlighted that Afghanistan, Kenya, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Guatemala, and Lebanon had at least 1 million fewer people facing high levels of acute food insecurity since the 2023 peak, but they continue to experience major food crises.

"Shocks, such as intensifying conflict, El Nino-induced drought, and high domestic food prices drove worsening food crises in 18 countries by mid-2024," it said.

The report noted that Nigeria, Sudan, Myanmar, Ethiopia, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Chad, and Yemen all had at least 1 million more people facing high levels of acute food insecurity compared to the 2023 peak.

-- BERNAMA-ANADOLU