Half a million people in three West African nations rocked
by Ebola are going hungry and that number could double by March if food
supplies do not improve, two UN agencies warned. In Guinea, 230,000 people are
estimated to be facing sever food shortages because of the impact of Ebola. By
March 2015, the number is expected to rise to more than 470,000. Nearly 300,000
Liberians are expected to face severe food problems by March, up from 170,000
today.
In Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, the countries at the
heart of the worst recorded outbreak of Ebola, workers have been staying away
from markets and fields for fear of spreading the virus that has killed more
than 6,800 people since March. This fear has caused labour shortages on farms
for planting and weeding and cut household incomes, compounding an economic slowdown
in these three countries. Border closures and quarantines are disrupting supply
chains, hindering market access and exacerbating shortages, raising fears that
one million people from a combined population of 20 million could be going
hungry by March.
"The outbreak has revealed the vulnerability of current
food production systems and value chains in the worst Ebola-affected
countries," Bukar Tijani, the Food and Agriculture Organisation's (FAO)
representative for Africa said in a statement. The FAO said more food needs to
be imported into these countries which are facing a financial crunch because
exports have dropped and recommended cash transfers or vouchers for affected
people to buy food and help stimulate markets.
Denise Brown, a relief coordinator for the World Food Programme,
said the situation regarding food supplies could get worse before improvements
are seen from international efforts.
No comments:
Post a Comment