People are going to starve to death if we all decide
to fold our hands and do nothing; 20 million people according to the
United Nations.
This figure cuts across the world but most of them will come from Africa - Nigeria’s northeast, Somalia, South Sudan and Yemen.
These areas are already ravaged by conflict, making it impossible for farming activities but also preventing aid agencies from getting food to them.
That is why the U.N. Security Council on Wednesday called on warring parties in these countries to allow humanitarian aid access and urged countries to donate more money to avert famines threatening over 20 million people.
In a statement drafted by Sweden, the 15-member council expressed "deep concern that ongoing conflicts and violence have devastating humanitarian consequences and hinder an effective humanitarian response in the short, medium and long term, and are therefore a major cause of famine" in these four countries.
"The Security Council calls upon all parties in Yemen, South Sudan, Somalia and northeast Nigeria to urgently take steps that would enable a more effective humanitarian response," the statement said.
The United Nations appealed in February for $4.9 billion to combat what it calls the largest humanitarian crisis since the world body was formed more than 70 years ago, but U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said only 51% of that amount has been received.
"These four contexts are very different but one thing is in common - they are all affected by conflict, they are manmade and also the humanitarian access is hampered by the ongoing conflict," Sweden's Deputy U.N. Ambassador Carl Skau told reporters.
This figure cuts across the world but most of them will come from Africa - Nigeria’s northeast, Somalia, South Sudan and Yemen.
These areas are already ravaged by conflict, making it impossible for farming activities but also preventing aid agencies from getting food to them.
That is why the U.N. Security Council on Wednesday called on warring parties in these countries to allow humanitarian aid access and urged countries to donate more money to avert famines threatening over 20 million people.
In a statement drafted by Sweden, the 15-member council expressed "deep concern that ongoing conflicts and violence have devastating humanitarian consequences and hinder an effective humanitarian response in the short, medium and long term, and are therefore a major cause of famine" in these four countries.
"The Security Council calls upon all parties in Yemen, South Sudan, Somalia and northeast Nigeria to urgently take steps that would enable a more effective humanitarian response," the statement said.
The United Nations appealed in February for $4.9 billion to combat what it calls the largest humanitarian crisis since the world body was formed more than 70 years ago, but U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said only 51% of that amount has been received.
"These four contexts are very different but one thing is in common - they are all affected by conflict, they are manmade and also the humanitarian access is hampered by the ongoing conflict," Sweden's Deputy U.N. Ambassador Carl Skau told reporters.
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