NAIROBI - Almost a quarter of a billion people are now at risk of hunger as conflict, drought and flooding combined to wreak havoc on farms and food supply chains in 2022, according to the latest report.

The proportion of people experiencing highest levels of acute food insecurity globally rose from 108 million in 2016 to around 258 million in 2022, representing nearly 140 per cent increase, the Global Report on Food Crises (GRFC) 2023 says.

It adds that eight East African countries had nearly 57 million people – or 22 per cent of people globally – who faced highest levels of acute food insecurity in 2022.

The eight countries — Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan and Uganda — form Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), a trade bloc in East Africa, which contributed to the report.

The Africa section of the report, which was released by IGAD and the Food Security Information Network last week (14 June) as part of the Global Report on Food Crisis (GRFC) 2023, says the eight countries and many other countries in Sub-Saharan Africa are facing face acute food insecurity because of continuing conflicts, economic shocks resulting from COVID-19, and weather extremes including droughts.

“Pastoral livelihoods – the key livelihood activity across many of the worst-affected areas – were devastated by the drought. According to the most recent available estimate, 13.2 million livestock died across the [Horn of Africa] region due to a lack of pasture and water – 6.8 million in Ethiopia, 2.6 million in Kenya and 3.8 million in Somalia,” says the report.

The report also highlights how food insecurity is impacting children globally.

The report’s findings show the population facing high levels of acute food insecurity has increased for the fifth consecutive year, casting further doubt on the UN’s goal of ending hunger by 2030.