A record 282 million people are undernourished in Africa due to climate change, FAO reports

• About 20% of Africa's population was undernourished last year.
• Children in Central Africa are the most affected by stunted growth.
• The Loss and Damage Fund pledges at COP28 account for only 0.2% of Africa's annual losses.

Africa is facing a food crisis the likes of which it has never experienced before, with 282 million people undernourished, and a sharp increase expected next year, the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) said in a new report.

This effectively means the continent is far off track to achieve "zero hunger for 2030", a Sustainable Development Goal (SDG2).

At this stage, the report said, there was no chance for the continent to also achieve the 2025 target for the Malabo Declaration of ending hunger and all forms of malnutrition by 2025.

"About 868 million people were moderately or severely food-insecure, and more than one-third of them — 342 million people — were severely food-insecure," the report said.

More than two-thirds of the population in Central Africa, Eastern Africa, and Western Africa faced moderate or severe food insecurity, meaning "they did not have access to adequate food".

According to the report, due to the deterioration of food security and the lack of progress toward the World Health Organisation (WHO) global nutrition targets, countries must scale up their efforts if they are to achieve a world free of hunger and malnutrition by 2030.

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"The call for greater action remains true in view of projected lower rates of economic growth, high general and food price inflation, and rising borrowing costs on domestic and international markets since 2022," reads the report.

Stunted growth

Children are the hardest hit by any form of crisis, and so with hunger announcing itself in never-imagined ways across the continent, the report stated that in Africa, the prevalence of stunting among children under the age of 5 was 30%.

This is way above the global average of 22.2%. Central Africa ranked as the worst on the continent.

The report said:

Stunting is generally a permanent outcome caused by poor maternal health and nutrition, insufficient baby and young child feeding practices, and recurring infections that combine with a range of other factors over time. 

Loss and Damage

The report was released during the underwhelming COP28 summit at Expo City in Dubai.

Africa's food insecurity cannot be overemphasised, hence, the report, like most others, noted that the current climate catastrophe has numerous effects on water, soil, and biodiversity, and the frequency of extreme weather events is increasing food poverty.

These consequences reduce crop yields, livestock output, and the ability of fisheries and aquaculture to provide food.

At the beginning of COP28, world leaders agreed to operationalise the loss and damage fund and funding arrangements following years of negotiations.

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The fund was a longstanding and historic demand of developing nations on the frontlines of climate change, dealing with the destruction caused by ever-increasing extreme weather events such as drought, floods, and rising seas. However, not enough money was pledged.

A total of R13 billion was pledged, which is about 0.2% of what developing countries lose in irreversible losses annually.

Annually, developing countries lose R7.5 trillion.