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Global Report on Food Crises News Video

Mounting numbers of people face acute hunger and require urgent life-saving assistance, with number acutely hungry people in countries hit by food crises reaching in 2020 the highest level in five years, an annual report launched by an international alliance of UN, governmental and non-governmental agencies working to tackle food crises together has found.

The Global Network Against Food Crises’ report reveals that at least 155 million people experienced acute food insecurity at Crisis or worse levels (IPC/CH Phase 3 or above) across 55 countries and territories in 2020. This represents an increase of around 20 million people from the previous year, and a confirmation of a worrisome trend: acute food insecurity has been rising steadily over the past five years.

One year after COVID-19 spread across the world, the 2021 edition of the Global Report on Food Crises (GRFC) confirms that the pandemic and related containment measures have aggravated the impact of pre-existing fragilities, notably conflict and climate change. The resulting economic hardship has widened inequalities and exposed the structural vulnerabilities of local and global food systems, hitting already fragile contexts and vulnerable groups.

The worst food crises in 2020, in order of severity, were: the Democratic Republic of the Congo; Yemen; Afghanistan; the Syrian Arab Republic; the Sudan; northern Nigeria; Ethiopia; South Sudan; Zimbabwe; and Haiti.

Together these 10 countries and territories were home to over 103 million of the 155 million people suffering from high acute hunger in 2020.

Country Various Countries - see shotlist

Duration 7m4s

Edit Version International

Video Type Video News Release (VNR)

Date 04/30/2021 7:26 PM

File size 775.54 MB

Unique ID UF2T9M

All editorial uses permitted

Production details and shotlist

UNFAO Source FAO Video

Shotlist Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kasai Province, July 2017

1. People walking in the street

2. Close up on a woman’s face

Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, March 2018

3. Rohingya people walking inside camp

Lesotho, Leribe District, July 2017

4. Woman in a maize field harvesting maize from the stalk

Yemen, Ibb Governorate, March 2020

5. Close up of hand digging the earth

6. Farmer removing grass from a field

Afar Region, Ethiopia, 7 March 2016

7. Undernourished cattle on a country road

8. Close up of young herder

Turkana County, Kenya, June 2020

9. Desert locust eating leaves

10. Farmer trying to disperse locusts

Arghakhanchi district, Nepal, July 2017

11. Water buffaloes walking on dry river bank

12. Close up on women farmers

Rome, Italy, 27 April 2021

13. SOUNDBITE (English) Dominique Burgeon, FAO Emergency and Resilience director: “In short the main finding of this report is that 2020 was a very dark year for humanity, in more ways than one. Of course, the suffering inflicted by the COVID-19 pandemic was on our television screens every evening. But what this report also tells us is that in addition to that human misery, 155 million women, children and men were enduring in 2020 what we call ‘high levels of acute food insecurity.’ That actually represents an increase of around 20 million people compared the last edition of this Global Report on Food Crises.”

Yemen, Khawlan District, Sana'a Governorate, 21 July 2019

14. Sunrise view from Khawlan

15. Dry vineyard

Merille, Somalia, 26 July 2016

16. Wide shot of a skeleton of a dead animal in the desert

17. Undernourished goat

Gaibandha district, Northwest Bangladesh, 1 September 2020

18. Aerial shot of flooded area

19. Aerial shot of damaged riverbank and banana plants caused by monsoon floods

Philippines, Lubao, Pampanga Province, November 2017

20. Aerial shot of damaged coconut palms

Haiti, 2016

21. Tracking shot of aftermath of Hurricane Matthew

Rome, Italy, 27 April 2021

22. SOUNDBITE (English) Dominique Burgeon, FAO Emergency and Resilience director: “This report tells us that conflict remains the number one driver of acute hunger. As a matter of fact, 99 million people were facing acute food insecurity in 23 countries and territories where conflict and insecurity were the primary driver. Conflict was followed by economic shocks, many of which were already a factor before COVID-19 even started, but which have been badly exacerbated by the pandemic. Climate disruptions and weather extremes such as droughts and floods, were the third most significant drivers of acute hunger in 2020.”

Syria, Aleppo governorate, April 2020

23. FAO expert following the installation of low tunnels as part of an FAO project helping farmers produce amid COVID-19 pandemic as part of a programme to enhance the livelihood opportunities of smallholders

24. Farmers wearing masks installing the low tunnel arches

Rome, Italy, 27 April 2021

25. SOUNDBITE (English) Dominique Burgeon, FAO Emergency and Resilience director: “To prevent widespread famine from breaking out in 2021, humanitarian action is needed now to save lives and save livelihoods on a massive scale. FAO is on the ground, providing desperately needed livelihoods assistance so rural populations can continue to produce and access food. But we urgently need resources. And why so? We know from experience that even in difficult crises contexts, it is possible to help people produce food that keeps them alive. We know that no matter what, no matter the situation they are in, farmers are farmers and they will try to keep farming, even in the most difficult circumstances. Our goal therefore is to help them farming. Preventing famine starts with producing food right where it is needed most.

Yemen, Ibb Governorate, March 2020

26. Water tank with European Union and FAO logos

27. Water running out of a tube

28. Water running into a field

29. Farmer at work

Rome, Italy, 27 April 2021

30. SOUNDBITE (English) Dominique Burgeon, FAO Emergency and Resilience director: “We need to work together, from national governments, to local organizations, UN agencies and NGOs, to the private sector, to radically transform our agrifood systems so that they are more inclusive, more resilient and more sustainable. That means anticipating crises with on-the-ground real-time early warning and rapid action when we see a deterioration. It also means strengthening social safety nets, so when a crisis happens, people have somewhere to turn to.”

Sudan, Azaza Village 9, 10 November 2020

31. FAO staff arriving on a UN marked 4x4 vehicle to assess the damages caused by floods

32. FAO staff interacting with local farmers

33. Various of flooded fields

Rome, Italy, 27 April 2021

34. SOUNDBITE (English) Dominique Burgeon, FAO Emergency and Resilience director: “It also means advocacy. Advocacy that is backed up by political commitment and sufficient funds, to rectify the overwhelming impact and burden of climate change on the most vulnerable. Overall, it means massive investments in building the resilience of people, of their livelihoods, and of their communities so they can cope with inevitable shocks.”

Haiti, 2016

35. Seeds distribution

36. Close up on a hand taking seeds from a bag

Merille, Somalia, 26 July 2016

37. Wide shot of the village

38. Various of a veterinarian giving treatment to sheep

Philippines, Lubao, Pampanga Province, November 2017

39. Wide shot of a man installing a battery on a drone as part of an FAO project to map out at-risk areas of agricultural land

40. Close up of a battery being installed on a drone

41. Drone being launched in the sky

Shamva, Zimbabwe, 23 February 2017

42. Farmer and Fao officer walking close to a maize field to assess damages caused by Fall Armyworm

43. Farmer opening leaves

44. Armyworm on a leaf

Turkana County, Kenya, June 2020

45. Close up on desert locust hoppers on the ground

46. Hoppers eating crops

47. Spray vehicle spraying pesticide

Kenya, Seren, Samburu county, 4 April, 2020

48. Wide shot of an FAO airplane spraying pesticide

Honduras, July 2015

49. Various of containers being loaded onto a ship

Turkey, April 2018

50. Women picking olives

51. Women working in an orange processing plant

52. Women working in a dried tomato processing plant

53. Woman at work in a food processing plant

Njoro, Kenya, 8 October 2020

54. Various shots of Njoro town market

Script Mounting numbers of people face acute hunger and require urgent life-saving assistance, with number acutely hungry people in countries hit by food crises reaching in 2020 the highest level in five years, an annual report launched by an international alliance of UN, governmental and non-governmental agencies working to tackle food crises together has found.

The Global Network Against Food Crises’ report reveals that at least 155 million people experienced acute food insecurity at Crisis or worse levels (IPC/CH Phase 3 or above) across 55 countries and territories in 2020. This represents an increase of around 20 million people from the previous year, and a confirmation of a worrisome trend: acute food insecurity has been rising steadily over the past five years.

One year after COVID-19 spread across the world, the 2021 edition of the Global Report on Food Crises (GRFC) confirms that the pandemic and related containment measures have aggravated the impact of pre-existing fragilities, notably conflict and climate change. The resulting economic hardship has widened inequalities and exposed the structural vulnerabilities of local and global food systems, hitting already fragile contexts and vulnerable groups.

The worst food crises in 2020, in order of severity, were: the Democratic Republic of the Congo; Yemen; Afghanistan; the Syrian Arab Republic; the Sudan; northern Nigeria; Ethiopia; South Sudan; Zimbabwe; and Haiti.

Together these 10 countries and territories were home to over 103 million of the 155 million people suffering from high acute hunger in 2020.

Countries in Africa remained disproportionally affected by acute food insecurity. Close to 98 million people facing acute food insecurity in 2020 were on the African continent, that is 63% of the global share.

Acute food insecurity is the most extreme end of the hunger spectrum (IPC/CH Phase 3 or above). This means people are unable to feed their families and could be forced to either sell off household assets for cash, or rely on external assistance, to survive.

SOUNDBITE (English) Dominique Burgeon, FAO Emergency and Resilience director: “In short the main finding of this report is that 2020 was a very dark year for humanity, in more ways than one. Of course, the suffering inflicted by the COVID-19 pandemic was on our television screens every evening. But what this report also tells us is that in addition to that human misery, 155 million women, children and men were enduring in 2020 what we call ‘high levels of acute food insecurity.’ That actually represents an increase of around 20 million people compared the last edition of this Global Report on Food Crises.”

In 2020 conflict was the main driver of food crises at the global level, followed by economic shocks and weather extremes.

Almost 100 million people were in acute food insecurity in 23 countries and territories where conflict and insecurity were the primary driver. In 2019 they were 77 million.

Economic shocks, heavily related to measures to contain the COVID-19 pandemic, were the second most important driver, with over 40 million people in acute food insecurity in 17 countries and territories. In 2019 they were 24 million in 8 countries.

Weather extremes were the primary driver of acute food insecurity with over 15 million people affected in 2020.

SOUNDBITE (English) Dominique Burgeon, FAO Emergency and Resilience director: “This report tells us that conflict remains the number one driver of acute hunger. As a matter of fact, 99 million people were facing acute food insecurity in 23 countries and territories where conflict and insecurity were the primary driver. Conflict was followed by economic shocks, many of which were already a factor before COVID-19 even started, but which have been badly exacerbated by the pandemic. Climate disruptions and weather extremes such as droughts and floods, were the third most significant drivers of acute hunger in 2020.”

People in food crises need a range of urgent help, from lifesaving humanitarian assistance to life-sustaining livelihoods support.

SOUNDBITE (English) Dominique Burgeon, FAO Emergency and Resilience director: “To prevent widespread famine from breaking out in 2021, humanitarian action is needed now to save lives and save livelihoods on a massive scale. FAO is on the ground, providing desperately needed livelihoods assistance so rural populations can continue to produce and access food. But we urgently need resources. And why so? We know from experience that even in difficult crises contexts, it is possible to help people produce food that keeps them alive. We know that no matter what, no matter the situation they are in, farmers are farmers and they will try to keep farming, even in the most difficult circumstances. Our goal therefore is to help them farming. Preventing famine starts with producing food right where it is needed most.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) and the partners of the Global Network against Food Crises are committed to working alongside affected populations, governments and stakeholders at national, regional and the global levels to address all dimensions of food crises by strengthening coordinated actions to combating food insecurity and preventing famine.

SOUNDBITE (English) Dominique Burgeon, FAO Emergency and Resilience director: “We need to work together, from national governments, to local organizations, UN agencies and NGOs, to the private sector, to radically transform our agrifood systems so that they are more inclusive, more resilient and more sustainable. That means anticipating crises with on-the-ground real-time early warning and rapid action when we see a deterioration. It also means strengthening social safety nets, so when a crisis happens, people have somewhere to turn to.”

The members of the Global Network Against Food Crises are asking for concerted advocacy and political commitment, backed up with sufficient resources, to rectify the overwhelming burden of climate change on the most vulnerable.

SOUNDBITE (English) Dominique Burgeon, FAO Emergency and Resilience director: “It also means advocacy. Advocacy that is backed up by political commitment and sufficient funds, to rectify the overwhelming impact and burden of climate change on the most vulnerable. Overall, it means massive investments in building the resilience of people, of their livelihoods, and of their communities so they can cope with inevitable shocks.”

Founded by the EU, FAO and WFP in 2016, the Global Network Against Food Crises is an alliance of humanitarian and development actors working together to prevent, prepare for, and respond to food crises and support the Sustainable Development Goal to End Hunger (SDG 2).

The Global Report on Food Crises is the flagship publication of the Global Network and is facilitated by the Food Security Information Network (FSIN). The Report is the result of a consensus-based and multi-partner analytical process involving 16 international humanitarian and development partners.

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