The UN warns of an “increasingly serious” food crisis in Central and West Africa

MADRID Dec. 21 (EUROPA PRESS) –

The United Nations World Food Program (WFP) has warned that more than 40 million people in West and Central Africa are in a situation of food insecurity, facing what it describes as “an increasingly serious food crisis,” a figure which could reach 52.7 million by mid-2025.

“The vicious cycle of hunger in West and Central Africa can be broken, but a fundamental change in our approach is necessary,” WFP Regional Director for West Africa, Margot van der Velden, said in a statement this Friday.

“We need timely, flexible and predictable funding to reach people affected by the crisis with life-saving assistance, and massive investments in preparedness, anticipatory action and building resilience to empower communities and reduce humanitarian needs,” he added.

According to the UN agency, based on a new food security analysis by the Cadre Harmonisé, despite perceiving a slight improvement compared to last year, driven by better rainfall in some areas of the Sahel and advances in security, food insecurity continues. worsening due to conflict, displacement, economic instability and severe climate shocks.

The number of people experiencing emergency levels of hunger, they have detailed, has increased by 70% in the post-harvest season and 22% during the lean season between June and August 2025.

The most affected countries include Nigeria, Cameroon and Chad, which together are home to more than half of the food-insecure population. Forcibly displaced people are the most vulnerable as they lose access to their farmland and grazing areas.

More than 10 million people have been displaced in the region, with Burkina Faso, Chad, Cameroon, Mauritania, Niger and Nigeria among the most affected countries. This year’s deadly floods have left six million people homeless, destroying livelihoods and disrupting agricultural production.

The subregional coordinator of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has argued that “the continued deterioration of food security and nutrition, despite significant efforts by governments and partners, highlights the need urgent need for a paradigm shift in the response.

“We need to strengthen and implement joint integrated resilience programs in the most affected countries and beyond. In addition, we must facilitate smallholder farmers’ access to locally produced fertilizers to boost the production of sustainable, affordable and nutritious food,” he added.

The food crisis, the report warns, is also seriously affecting children’s nutrition. In 2024, it is estimated that 16.3 million children will suffer from acute malnutrition, of which 5 million are in its most severe form.

In this sense, the regional director of Unicef, Gilles Fagninou, has claimed the importance of “guaranteeing a reliable and sufficient supply of therapeutic foods to treat children under five years of age in the region.”

“Good nutrition in the first years of life is the foundation for the survival and development of children and for a healthy adult life later in life. Every dollar invested in nutrition produces up to $16 in economic benefits through better health, better educational results and greater productivity throughout life,” he explained.

The UN has thus called for an urgent and sustained response to prevent food insecurity from further deteriorating, affecting millions of people in the region.