Bangladesh among countries in food crisis situation: FAO

United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) identified 23 countries and territories, including Bangladesh, from low- and middle-income groups, are in a food crisis situation due to conflicts.

The latest study of FAO titled “The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the world 2021: Transforming Food Systems for Food Security, Improved Nutrition and Affordable Health Diets for All” said the number of countries, as well as the specific countries, experiencing violent conflicts has remained relatively stable over the last ten years.

The other 22 countries and territories are: Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt (Syrian refugees), Iraq, Jordan (Syrian refugees), Lebanon (Syrian refugees), Libya, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Pakistan, Palestine, South Sudan, Syrian Arab Republic, Turkey (Syrian refugees), Uganda, Ukraine and Yemen.

“The numbers of conflicts that include one-sided, state- and non-state violence have increased dramatically and now are at an all-time high. These increases have been accompanied by increasing numbers of displaced people. The number of refugees and internally displaced persons has increased significantly with the increase in conflicts, more than double from 40 million in 2010 to more than 80 million in 2020,” the report notes.

It said that internal conflicts have surpassed the number of interstate conflicts and there is a significant rise in internationalized internal conflicts (internal conflicts that have spread to involve other nations).

“Coupled with large outflows of displaced people and the entanglement of external international actors, conflicts are also increasingly a regional problem, with cross-border armed networks that are all too ready to share resources to further their common goals,” the report reads.

The FAO report highlights the need for a deeper reflection on how to better address the global food security and nutrition situation.

To understand how hunger and malnutrition have reached these critical levels, this report draws on the analyses of the past four editions, which have produced a vast, evidence-based body of knowledge of the major drivers behind the recent changes in food security and nutrition.

These drivers, which are increasing in frequency and intensity, include conflicts, climate variability and extremes, and economic slowdowns and downturns – all exacerbated by the underlying causes of poverty and very high and persistent levels of inequality.