Humanitarian organizations estimate one person dying of hunger every four seconds – “It is abysmal that with all the technology in agriculture and harvesting techniques today, we are still talking about famine in the 21st century”

Map showing drought and famine prediction priority areas in Somalia by district, 31 August 2022. Famine is projected in Baidoa and Burhakaba districts, Bay region, during October-December 2022 unless life-saving assistance is urgently ramped up to reach the people most in need. About 7.8 million Somalis have been affected by the worst drought in four decades, with more than 1 million displaced by drought including nearly 99,000 in August Graphic: OCHA

20 September 2022 (Al Jazeera) – One person is estimated to be dying of hunger every four seconds, more than 200 NGOs have warned, urging decisive international action to “end the spiralling global hunger crisis”.

In an open letter addressing world leaders gathering in New York for the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday, 238 organisations from 75 countries – including Oxfam, Save the Children, and Plan International – expressed outrage at skyrocketing hunger levels.

“A staggering 345 million people are now experiencing acute hunger, a number that has more than doubled since 2019,” they said in a statement.

“Despite promises from world leaders to never allow famine again in the 21st century, famine is once more imminent in Somalia. Around the world, 50 million people are on the brink of starvation in 45 countries,” they said.

Pointing out that as many as 19,700 people are estimated to be dying of hunger every day, the NGOs said that this translates to one person dying of hunger every four seconds.

“It is abysmal that with all the technology in agriculture and harvesting techniques today we are still talking about famine in the 21st century,” Mohanna Ahmed Ali Eljabaly from the Yemen Family Care Association, one of the letter’s signatories, said in the statement.

“This is not about one country or one continent and hunger never only has one cause. This is about the injustice of the whole of humanity,” he said.

“We must not wait a moment longer to focus both on providing immediate lifesaving food and longer-term support so people can take charge of their futures and provide for themselves and their families.”

According to the organisations, the global hunger crisis has been fuelled by a “deadly mix of poverty, social injustice, gender inequality, conflict, climate change, and economic shocks”, along with the lingering impacts of the coronavirus pandemic and the war in Ukraine, which further increased food prices.

No water, no food, a hopeless life. Above all, my children are starving. They are on the verge of death. Unless they get some food, I’m afraid they will die.
Sumaya, a 32-year-old mother who lives with her four children in a displacement camp in the Somali region of Ethiopia

Russia and Ukraine are the world’s third and fourth-largest grain exporters, respectively, while Russia is also a key fuel and fertiliser exporter.

The war, now in its seventh month, has disrupted their exports, pushed world food prices to record levels and triggered protests in developing countries already struggling with soaring food prices due to COVID-19-related supply chain issues.

“Those with the power and money to change this must come together to better respond to current crises and prevent and prepare for future ones,” they said.

Earlier this year, UN agencies warned of a “looming catastrophe” as world hunger levels rose again after the year 2020. In a report, the agencies said nearly 10 percent of the world’s population was affected by hunger last year – 46 million more than in 2020 and 150 million more than in 2019.

Hunger now killing one person every four seconds, NGOs say

Drought and Famine Prevention Response Dashboard for Somalia, January 2022 - August 2022. Graphic: OCHA — Drought and Famine Prevention Response Dashboard for Somalia, January 2022 – August 2022. Graphic: OCHA

Humanitarian organisations estimate one person dying of hunger every four seconds

NEW YORK, 20 September 2022 (Action Against Hunger) – With one person estimated to be dying of hunger every four seconds, 238 local and international non-governmental organisations are calling on leaders gathering at the 77th UN General Assembly to take decisive action to end the spiralling global hunger crisis.

Organisations from 75 countries have signed an open letter expressing outrage at skyrocketing hunger levels and recommendations for action. A staggering 345 million people are now experiencing acute hunger, a number that has more than doubled since 2019.

Despite promises from world leaders to never allow famine again in the 21st century, famine is once more imminent in Somalia. Around the world, 50 million people are on the brink of starvation in 45 countries.

Mohanna Ahmed Ali Eljabaly from the Yemen Family Care Association, one of the letter’s signatories, said:

“It is abysmal that with all the technology in agriculture and harvesting techniques today we are still talking about famine in the 21st century. This is not about one country or one continent and hunger never only has one cause. This is about the injustice of the whole of humanity. It is extremely difficult to see people suffering while others sharing the same planet have plenty of food. We must not wait a moment longer to focus both on providing immediate lifesaving food and longer-term support so people can take charge of their futures and provide for themselves and their families.”

Sumaya, a 32-year-old mother who lives with her four children in a displacement camp in the Somali region of Ethiopia, is one of the millions facing catastrophic levels of hunger.

“No water, no food, a hopeless life,” she said. “Above all, my children are starving. They are on the verge of death. Unless they get some food, I’m afraid they will die.”

The global hunger crisis has been fuelled by a deadly mix of poverty, social injustice, gender inequality, conflict, climate change, and economic shocks, with the lingering impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and the crisis in Ukraine further driving up food prices and the cost of living.

Those with the power and money to change this must come together to better respond to current crises and prevent and prepare for future ones.

Notes

The calculations of the estimated mortality rate from hunger per second was calculated by applying the IPC crude death rate cut offs for IPC Phase 3, minus a normal daily death rate of 0.22 per 10,000 people per day, to the recent Global Report on Food Crises mid-year update for 2022 (released 12/09/22) figure which is 205.1 million people in IPC Phase 3 Acute Food Insecurity or worse (IPC Phases: 3 Crisis, 4 Emergency and 5 Catastrophe), which require immediate humanitarian assistance. This would equal between 7,745.7 and 19,701.7 people dying daily as a result of acute hunger, and between 5.39 and 13.69 people dying per minute. That translates to one person dying every 4.25 – 12 seconds. This is a conservative estimate since the death rates for people in IPC Phase 4 and 5 are significantly higher.
Current acute hunger levels are 345 million; they were 135 million in 2019: https://www.wfp.org/publications/wfp-global-operational-response-plan-update-5-june-2022.
Open letter, signed by 238 NGOs from 75 countries, together with policy recommendations, can be viewed here: https://sdg2advocacyhub.org/news/open-letter-un-member-states-global-food-crisis.

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