Alert that 2.2 million people, more than a third of the population, “do not have enough to eat”
July 20 (EUROPA PRESS) –
The United Nations has announced the delivery of 15 million dollars (about 14.7 million euros) to alleviate food insecurity in the Central African Republic (CAR), where 2.2 million people, which represents more than a third of the population, “they don’t have enough to eat.
UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Martin Griffiths has ordered the release of funds from the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) to “help actors drive comprehensive emergency assistance to 200,000 people in ten sub-prefectures where food insecurity is most severe.
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has indicated in a statement that CAR has one of the highest proportions of people in a situation of critical food insecurity, along with Yemen, South Sudan and Afghanistan, with a total of 36 percent of the population.
“A large part of the population lives in areas affected by the conflict, where insecurity and displacement have reduced the areas available for cultivation and restricted access to markets and fields,” he explained, before highlighting that “the impact of the war in Ukraine is aggravating the situation, with projections of a 70 per cent increase in basic products for the month of August”.
In this sense, he has defended a “multisectoral” position that combines “food aid, nutrition, health care, water, hygiene and protection” to “maximize the impact of interventions at the level of food security and reduce the population’s use of negative mechanisms associated with food scarcity in an increase in extreme deprivation”.
“This delivery of funds is very necessary for thousands of people who have problems eating once a day,” said the UN humanitarian coordinator in the African country, Denis Brown, who stressed that “the priority is to save lives” .
“This emergency response will help people feed themselves, restart farming where possible, and treat malnutrition. It will also ensure that people have access to healthcare and clean water, two key requirements for healthy intake.” adequate food,” he argued.
In this way, a total of six UN organizations will expand the delivery of food and cash, as well as the distribution of agricultural tools and seeds. This will be complemented by increased treatment and prevention of child malnutrition and facilitation of access to clean water for families with severely malnourished children.
The African country was plunged into a serious crisis in 2020 as a result of the elimination of the candidacy of former president François Bozizé, who returned to the country at the end of 2019 to once again be a candidate for the Presidency, a position he abandoned in 2014 due to the uprising of the predominantly Muslim Séléka rebels.
After that, the Patriots for Change Coalition (CPC) –which brings together several rebel groups, including several signatories of the 2018 peace agreement– launched an offensive that allowed it to reach the outskirts of the capital, although from then the Army has maintained sustained advances against the rebels, led by Bozizé.
The Central African president won the elections, while the parliamentary elections were held in phases due to insecurity and amid complaints from the opposition about irregularities and fraud in the process.
Add Comment