Famine is a widespread scarcity of food. It is caused by various factors such as war, natural disasters, unstable economic and political situations, and more. Famine is a food crisis that causes illnesses and death, and it can certainly damage future generations, as malnutrition in infants can lead to the suffering of poor health and stunted development.
Hunger is only one part of famines.
Find out all the info about this terrifying situation in today’s article.
4 Fundamental Famine Statistics & Data (Editor’s Pick)
- Famine depends on 3 rising factors.
- 4.5 million people are on the edge of famine in Nigeria.
- Somalia and South Sudan were famine-classified in the last decade.
- More than 580,000 people faced famine-like conditions in 2021.
11 Famine Statistics
1. Famine depends on 3 rising factors.
Famines are declared when 20% of the country’s households face extreme food shortages with limited ability to cope, when acute malnutrition rates exceed by 30%, and when the death rate exceeds 2 persons per 10,000 persons per day. All these factors need to be positive in order for the country to declare a famine crisis.
Source: The Borgen Project
2. The 21st century brought massive progress regarding famine.
Due to the adoption of human rights and globalization, the 21st century brought massive progress regarding famine. Now, it is difficult to look the other way when people are dying of hunger. In the 20th century, massive famines could kill millions of people within a decade, but today, the situation is a bit different and there are many organizations that fight for the humans “Right on Food”.
Source: The Borgen Project
3. Conditions in Nigeria are at the edge of famine.
According to ReliefWeb, the World Food Programme is sounding the alarm in Nigeria. The country is facing the threat of famine. The United Nations also reported that 4.5 million people are on the edge of famine in northeastern Nigeria. The people there are facing extreme food shortages and acute hunger due to violence and conflict.
Source: ReliefWeb and United Nations
4. About 584,000 people are already living in famine-like conditions.
A recent analysis by the United Nations stated that 41 million people in 43 countries are on the very edge of famine. 584,000 people are already experiencing famine-like conditions in Ethiopia, Madagascar, South Sudan, and Yemen. Besides the already mentioned Nigeria, Burkina Faso also has some areas which already have famine-like conditions.
Source: United Nations
5. In South Sudan, 2.4 million people are at risk of famine.
Over half of South Sudan’s population is facing severe hunger this entire year. 2.4 million people are at risk of famine if they don’t receive aid. Due to the hunger crisis and severe situation in South Sudan, the World Food Programme is working to reach 5.3 million people with food assistance. According to the World Food Programme and their report from December 2021, the country is on the brink of famine.
source: World Food Programme
6. There were 2 famine classifications in the last decade.
According to the Borgen Project, there were two examples of famine classification in the past decade. Back in 2011 in Somalia and in 2017 in South Sudan. The famine there resulted in widespread acute malnutrition and thousands of people died. These were extreme food crises and large amounts of the population lacked adequate access to food. This happened because of the conflict and erratic weather patterns in Somalia and South Sudan.
Source: The Borgen Project
7. In Somalia, 490,000 people experienced acute food insecurity.
In 2011 in Somalia, famine was declared in some specific parts of the country, including Balcad and Cadale districts of Middle Shabelle, the Mogadishu IDP community, and the Afgoye corridor IDP settlement. Due to famine, 490,000 people in Somalia were experiencing Catastrophic levels of acute food insecurity. The main reasons for such terrible conditions were conflict, drought, and poor rains.
Source: IPC
8. In South Sudan, one million people were classified as an emergency.
In 2017, famine was declared in some parts of South Sudan. Nearly 80,000 people faced famine conditions in the central-northern part of South Sudan, while another one million people were classified as an emergency. According to the data and statistics provided by IPC, the main reason for such a situation in South Sudan was the civil war that affected the life and economy, and it contributed to high food prices.
Source: IPC
9. Some countries are at high risk of famine.
Today, more than 34 million people around the globe are in IPC Phase 4. They are facing emergency levels of acute food insecurity. They are also highly vulnerable to facing famine or famine-like conditions if there won’t be any urgent immediate life-saving action. According to ReliefWeb, by the time famine is declared, thousands and thousands of lives will already be lost.
Source: ReliefWeb
10. Over 50 million Yemenis are on the brink of famine.
Yemenis are fighting a catastrophic food crisis too. 16.2 million people are food insecure, while pockets of famine-like conditions have returned to Yemen in Amran, Al Jawf, and Hajjah. In those towns, 50,000 people are living in famine-like conditions. Over 5 million Yemenis are on the brink of famine due to conflict and an unstable economy.
Source: World Food Programme
11. Around 45 million people were at the edge of starvation in 2020.
The threat of starvation and famine is growing in other countries too. Afghanistan, the Central African Republic, Haiti, Honduras, Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sudan, Uganda, Venezuela, and Zimbabwe. The World Food Programme data stated that in 2020, 45 million people in 43 countries were on the very edge of famine and starvation. That is a high increase since 2019 when there were 27 million people in such a situation.
Source: World Food Programme
To Wrap It Up
Famine means not enough food for a great number of people which then leads to illnesses and death. Conflict, the unstable situation of the economy and politics, as well as many natural disasters are the main causes of famine. Even though there is no country that has famine classification at the moment, the hunger situation puts millions and millions of people at the very edge of facing starvation and there is no doubt that a large number of people will face famine in the near future.
