THE Oxford Committee For Famine Relief (OXFAM) says West Africa is currently facing its worst food crisis, with over 27 million people going hungry.
The agency said the number could rise to 38 million by June if care is not taken.
This was contained in a statement signed by the Communication officer, Oxfam Nigeria, Rita Abiodun, and issued to journalists in Nigeria.
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According to the statement, the alert was issued in a report conducted by 11 international organisations in response to new analyses of the March 2022 Cadre Harmonisé (CH), ahead of the virtual conference on the food and nutrition crisis in the Sahel and Lake Chad organised by the European Union (EU) and the Sahel and West Africa Club.
The report added that the increase in the number of persons facing hunger would set a new alarming historic level unless urgent action is taken.
It stated that over the past decade, far from abating, food crises have been increasing across the West African region, including in Burkina Faso, Niger Republic, Chad, Mali and Nigeria, adding that between 2015 and 2022, the number of people in need of emergency food assistance nearly quadrupled, from 7 to 27 million.
“Cereal production in some parts of the Sahel has dropped by about a third compared to last year. Family food supplies are running out. Drought, floods, conflict and the economic impacts of COVID-19 have forced millions of people off their land, pushing them to the brink,” Oxfam’s Regional Director for West and Central Africa, Assalama Dawalack Sidi said, according to the statement.
The Director, Save the Children, West and Central Africa, W. Adapoe, said, “The situation is forcing hundreds of thousands of people to move to different communities and to live with host families who are already living in difficult conditions.”
“There is not enough food, let alone nutritious food enough for children. We must help them urgently because their health, future and lives are at risk,” he added.
The 11 international organisations that participated in the report are Oxfam, Action Against Hunger, Save the Children, CARE International, International Rescue Committee (IRC), and Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC).
Others are the Alliance for International Medical Action (ALIMA), Tearfund, World Vision (WV), Handicap International – Humanité & Inclusion and Mercy Corps.
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