30.5 million people in sub-Saharan Africa need food aid, UN report warns

Some 30.5 million people in 24 countries in sub-Saharan Africa are facing food emergencies caused by problems ranging from war to bad weather to economic crisis, with 12 million people in southern Africa needing immediate aid after a poor cereal harvest, according to a United Nations report issued today.

Cereal import requirements in 2005-06 are expected to remain high at about 3.2 million tons. Cereal pledges for 2004-05, including those carried over from 2003-04, amount to 2.8 million tons, of which 2 million tons have been delivered, the Rome-based UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said.

Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe will all need emergency assistance as early as November, the Rome-based UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) warned.

In Malawi, 4.6 million people, about 40 per cent of the population, face shortages due mainly to rising maize prices, while in Zimbabwe the number could reach 3 million, according to the report, which warned that prospects for 2006 are seriously threatened by the short supply and high costs of farm inputs such as seeds, fuel and fertilizer.

South Africa has fared much better with a good maize harvest, and the resulting closing stocks of 5.1 million tons, as of 30 June, are more than enough to cover the sub-region's maize import requirements.

In Eastern Africa, despite beneficial rains and favourable crop prospects in some parts, the food situation remains precarious for the large number of people with high malnutrition rates reported in several countries, the report said.

The situation in Sudan is particularly alarming due to prolonged conflict in Darfur and also in southern regions, where access to food is worsening for returnees.

In Somalia, nearly 1 million people need aid after a poor main season harvest coupled with an upsurge in civil strife. Eritrea and Ethiopia are expected to have generally favourable main crop seasons but a large number of people still depend on food aid due to the lingering effects of earlier drought and/or war, according to the report.

In Western Africa crop prospects are “generally good” in the Sahel, but the region and northern parts of several coastal countries continue to face a difficult lean season due mainly to unusually high food prices. Crops in Niger, hit by shortages earlier this year, are developing satisfactorily thanks to generally widespread rainfall and adequate soil moisture. In Sierra Leone, despite heavy rains and flooding in the south, agriculture continues to improve following the end of the civil war in 2002.

In Central Africa civil strife and insecurity still undermine food security in several countries, particularly in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), where the report said food insecurity affects over 70 per cent of the population of 57 million.