More than 100 million people on the continent of Africa face "catastrophic" levels of food insecurity, according to a new report released by the International Federation of the Red Cross (IFRC).
The report said that Africa has long been suffering from food insecurity caused by many factors such as conflict, insecurity, locust infestation, lack of rain, climatic factors, market instability and disasters that contribute to reduced production and access to nutritious food.
The report, issued last Thursday, stated that "the Corona pandemic was also the main driver of acute food insecurity in both rural and urban areas in most African countries."
In East Africa, worse outcomes are expected until at least next month in most parts of the region (north-eastern Somalia, southern Sudan and Ethiopia, including the Tigray region), he added.
A UN official takes a photo of dead cows due to a previous drought in Kenya (Reuters - Archive)
The report stated that areas affected by conflict and civil insecurity, particularly in Lake Chad, border areas between Niger, Burkina Faso and Mali, and in Nigeria, suffer from limited access to land and other means of production.
The organization said that "there is no time to waste," and urged immediate action in terms of speed and scale, saying, "We call for collective, bold and long-term strategic actions towards the goal of eliminating hunger."