WFP Warns of Massive Increase in Hunger Worldwide due to Climate Crisis

The World Food Programme  (WFP) has warned of a massive increase in hunger rates around the world due to the exacerbation of the climate crisis.

In a report issued in Geneva, Switzerland, yesterday,  on the occasion of World Food Day, which falls today, the program explained that analyses conducted by its experts show that a rise in the global average temperature by two degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels will put an additional 189 million people in the grip of hunger.

The report pointed out that vulnerable societies, the vast majority of which depend on agriculture, fishing, and livestock, were the worst hit by the climate crisis.

Those societies will continue to bear the brunt of the effects with limited means to mitigate the blow.

David Beasley, Executive Director of the World Food Programme, said that vast areas of the world from Madagascar, an island-state in the Indian Ocean to Honduras, in Latin America, to Bangladesh, in Asia,  are experiencing a climate crisis that is now a daily reality for millions.

Beasley explained that successive droughts have pushed nearly 1.1 million people into extreme hunger.

About 14 %  of those people are in famine-like conditions, while this number is expected to double by the end of the year.

He stressed that when the climate crisis is combined with internal conflict, it leads to existing vulnerabilities and amplifies damage and destruction, as is happening in Afghanistan.

He noted that the WFP helps local communities adapt to the changing climate that threatens their ability to grow food, secure income, and withstand shocks, as it supported 39 governments and helped them Achieving its national climate ambitions in 2020.

The WFP also implemented solutions to manage climate risks in 28 countries, benefiting more than six million people so that they are more prepared for shocks and climatic stresses and can recover faster.

Beasley stated that the WFP  allocated nearly $300 million for climate action in the past decade, explaining that the conflict is causing millions to go hungry.

He stressed the urgent need to invest in early warning systems, climate adaptation, and resilience programs to avoid this looming humanitarian catastrophe.