the Hunger associated with coronavirus, could kill more people than the disease that claimed more than half a million lives around the world, experts warn. According to their estimates, by the end of the year from malnutrition can daily to die more than 10 thousand people.
a New report from Oxfam (Oxford Committee for famine relief is an international Association of 17 organizations working in more than 90 countries around the world to address the problems of poverty and related injustice around the world – “MK”) has warned that the famine, aggravated by the pandemic, potentially every day to kill more people than the infection itself.
As CNN reports, according to estimates by Oxfam, the end of the year from hunger-related coronavirus pandemic, can die about 12 thousand people a day. For comparison, the data of the John Hopkins University show that the deadliest day during the pandemic began on April 17, when it was 8 890 deaths.
“Pandemic was the last straw for millions of people, who are faced with the consequences of conflict, climate change, inequality and the broken food system, which led to the impoverishment of millions of producers and workers in the food industry,” says interim Executive Director of Oxfam Chema Faith.
Among the problems that led to the fact that many on the table, no food, – loss of income caused by unemployment or a decline in remittances, lack of social support for those who work in informal sectors of the economy and disruptions in the supply chain and obstacles faced by producers.
the Widening crisis also contribute to the travel restrictions associated with locks, which not only affect workers and farmers, but also on the delivery of humanitarian aid.
These new problems are aggravating long-standing problems contributing to global hunger, including war, climate change and growing inequality.
According to Oxfam, the pandemic coronavirus “has added fuel to the fire already growing crisis of hunger.”
According to the world food programme, referenced by the report from Oxfam, in 2019 821 million people experienced food shortages, and 149 million of them suffered from “hunger at a critical level or worse.” Current projections suggest that the number of people experiencing hunger at a critical level, can reach 270 million in 2020 as a result of the pandemic coronavirus – which is 80% more than in the previous year.
In the report, Oxfam identified 10 “hot spots” of hunger around the world: Yemen, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Afghanistan, Venezuela, the West African Sahel, Ethiopia, Sudan, South Sudan, Syria and Haiti.
But, according to a report by Oxfam, the negative effects of the pandemic on food security are felt in St��Anahita with the average level of income, such as Brazil, India and South Africa. Moreover, even the United States is no exception.
Over the last week 1.3 million Americans filed initial applications for unemployment benefits. This leads to the fact that the total number of Americans struggling to get food on the table, will make about 54 million people. “That was 46% higher compared to the 37 million people who were food insecure before the crisis COVID-19” – says the managing Director of the organization Feeding America Emily Engelhard.
According to preliminary data of the latest survey of food banks, Feeding America, 83% of food banks reported an increase in the number of people compared to the previous year with an average growth of 50%.
the Pandemic also revealed vulnerabilities in food supply chains in the United States. For example, outbreaks of coronavirus seriously affected the meat processing plants across the country, causing a shortage of products.
“We need a more diversified supply chain in which you have much more participants,” to avoid such problems, says CNN associate Professor School of applied Economics Cornell’s Miguel gómez.
Gomez said he’s not surprised the gloomy forecasts Oxfam, although he hoped that the worst-case scenario can still be avoided.
According to experts, the solution lies in global political action, such as investing in food assistance programs, the establishment or strengthening of safety nets for food and support farmers whose incomes are reduced.
Gomez argues that a more decisive intervention of the government for the purchase and redistribution of food products, as well as measures to prevent growth of retail prices for basic needs “at least in the short term” will be also effective.
see also: Experts evaluated claims about the dangers of masks from COVID-19 for the brain
