Pandemic worsening existing food crises across the Middle East, UN agencies warn
Even before the coronavirus outbreak, nearly 110 million people across the Middle East and North Africa were undernourished.
Lockdowns and other movement restrictions are exacerbating existing food crises in the Middle East and potentially creating new ones, a group of United Nations agencies warned Wednesday.
A joint statement from the Food and Agriculture Organization, World Food Program (WFP), the World Health Organization and the UN children’s agency, UNICEF, detailed the negative impact the coronavirus is having on household incomes, food supply chains and school meals.
“Measures needed to slow the transmission of the disease are resulting in hardship for many vulnerable families,” the agencies said. “Current circumstances may aggravate the already difficult situation that many families face in accessing affordable quality diets.”
Nearly 110 million people across the region are undernourished, with Afghanistan, Sudan, Syria and Yemen especially hard hit by food shortages.
