Avellon Williams
TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO- The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) reported on Tuesday that the number of severely food insecure people in Latin America and the Caribbean increased by more than half a million between December 2021 and March 2022.
According to the agency, there are 9.3 million vulnerable people in the countries where it operates in the region, and this number could grow to 13.3 million if the conflict in Ukraine continues.
WFP’s Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean Lola Castro, said “Millions of people could be pushed into poverty and hunger if the conflict in Ukraine continues. The region is already dealing with COVID-19, rising costs, and climate extremes.”
“We could return to food insecurity peaks seen during the height of the pandemic, as job and income losses, food inflation, and other driving factors batter the most vulnerable people.”
Since the beginning of the Ukraine conflict in late March, commodity, and energy prices have surged.
The intense dependence of many countries in the region on cereal imports is causing food inflation, which in turn threatens even more hunger.
Moreover, the WFP noted that the situation has also affected its operations in the region as a result of rising food and oil prices.
“In this year of unprecedented needs, our humanitarian dollar is stretched to breaking point. While the number of hungry people keeps rising, the gulf between our funding needs and available resources continues to widen,” said Castro.
To cover its operational costs across the region, the agency says it urgently needs $315 million over the next six months.
