Africa's 224 million people are malnourished as a result of climate change

Some 224 million people in Africa are suffering from malnutrition as a result of climate change and related conflicts. Climate change related conflicts have increased food insecurity in Africa, an official of the United Nations Food Agency said in a statement on Monday.

An official of the food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) addressed the African Conference, at which the official said that the current crisis was "worrying" because the population of the continent is expected to reach 1.7 billion by 2030.

Bukar tijani, assistant director general for Africa of FAO, said at the regional meeting held in Khartoum that "malnutrition expanded from about 21% to about 23% between 2015 and 2016". "Over the same period, the level of malnutrition in Africa increased from 200 million to 224 million. This is becoming a big problem for all of us," he said

The impact of climate change and continent related conflicts have caused great damage to life and property. However, the increase in malnutrition and food insecurity is related to the impact of climate change and natural disasters, bukar tijani later told AFP.

"This is closely related to climate change. We have floods and droughts, and we also have crop failures," he added.

The crises in Somalia, South Sudan and the Central African Republic have further exacerbated food insecurity, tijani said. "When you see these crises, you will notice that it poses a greater challenge to people, because even if food is available, they can't afford it, and they may not be able to deliver in these affected places.".

However, it should be noted that UN officials have warned that the rising level of food insecurity in Africa is affecting more people, because the main cause of conflict in some areas such as South Sudan is the increase in food demand.

More than 1 million people living in Sudan have become refugees and formed the world's young country in 2011. They migrate elsewhere when fleeing violence.

On a positive note, bukar tijani said that the African economy is rising and that the African continent is taking appropriate measures to reduce the level of food insecurity. He also said that Africa has improved its food and agricultural markets, and this allocation is expected to reach US $1 trillion by 2030.

In addition, the report submitted by FAO in 2017 shows that after years of deterioration, hunger has increased again and worsened in some parts of Africa, such as sub Saharan Africa, Southeast and West Africa. The inhabitants of these areas suffer from hunger and malnutrition; We have called on other governments to pay more attention to addressing climate change and its impact, so as to make the world a better place to live.

Citing the impact of climate change in these areas, Leah Samberg, a postdoctoral research assistant of global landscape action, said in a study: "during this period, these areas have witnessed strong storms, more frequent and continuous droughts and more changing rainfall, which is related to the climate change affecting all parts of the world today."

It must be noted that these events are not unrelated to each other. Importantly, countries affected by serious conflicts are more vulnerable to climate change related disasters and may cause social and economic instability, leading to the death of crops and livestock.

At the same time, due to climate change, the prices of some food commodities have risen, making it difficult for Africans to buy. A recent report mentioned that the poor people in South Africa interviewed said that about 50% of their income was used for food, and they had little spare power in other areas of life such as clothing and education.