Historic Drought Threatens Food Security for 26 Million People in Southern Africa – UN

A severe drought across southern Africa, compounded by the 2023-2024 El Nino climate phenomenon, has left 26 million people facing acute food insecurity, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) warned on Wednesday. The situation is expected to worsen until the next harvests, which are not due until March or April next year, unless urgent funding is provided.

“Today, up to 26 million people are experiencing acute food insecurity in the region, and this is due to the El Nino-induced drought,” said Eric Perdison, regional director for southern Africa at the WFP. The most severely affected countries include Angola, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

To prevent the crisis from escalating, the WFP has called for an additional $300 million in funding to ensure people have access to sufficient, nutritious, and affordable food. Without this support, the risk of widespread hunger is imminent. Five countries—Lesotho, Malawi, Namibia, Zambia, and Zimbabwe—have already declared a national state of emergency due to the devastating impact of the drought on crops and livestock.

In many areas, farmers have been unable to plant crops, leaving fields barren. “If you travel across the country, you will see almost all empty fields… The situation is really, really dire,” said Antonella D’Aprile, WFP’s country director in Mozambique. “Communities have very little or almost nothing to eat,” she added, noting that many families are surviving on just one meal per day.

The WFP has stressed that immediate assistance is crucial. “The time to support is really now,” said D’Aprile.

In Malawi, the WFP has had to import food to provide aid, as nearly half of the maize crop was destroyed by the drought. Families are facing grim choices, such as skipping meals, allowing adults to go without food so children can eat, and selling valuable possessions.

Despite Zambia’s reputation as the “food basket of southern Africa,” the country is on the brink of a hunger crisis, according to WFP’s director for Zambia, Cissy Kabasuuga. Similarly, in Namibia, an upper middle-income country, all 14 regions have been impacted by the drought, with some areas facing particularly high levels of food insecurity.

The WFP’s representative in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) also issued an urgent call for assistance. In the DRC, more than 25 million people are facing emergency levels of food insecurity, exacerbated by a combination of conflict, climate extremes, and health crises, including outbreaks of mpox, cholera, and measles. These challenges have led to an increase in sexual and gender-based violence and the opening of brothels near camps hosting displaced people.

In response to the crisis, US President Joe Biden announced a $1 billion humanitarian aid package during a recent trip to the region, which will support 31 African countries, including those affected by the drought.