Hunger in Africa
by Nearly 800 million people are still suffering from hunger in the world today. 86 countries cannot produce enough food to feed there populations nor do they have enough money to import food. Half of these countries are in Africa, the only continent where malnutrition is increasing.
The countries which are suffering from hunger are the poorest. Rich countries are paying less and less for the products they sell and are charging more and more for the goods they need. So they can’t develop their economies and their populations are victims of poverty and hunger. 
Image via Wikipedia
The right to food is a basic right. However in the poorest countries, 50% of children under five years old suffer from malnutrition, whilst this figure is only 5% in developed countries. Around 27-28 percent of all children in developing countries are estimated to be underweight or stunted. South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa are the two regions that account for the bulk of the deficit.
Other causes include famines which result from climate problems for which governments and international aid organisations need to get aid quickly to the affected areas to provide basic food aid. Wars increase hunger. The incessant civil wars in Africa prevent the countries from reconstructing their economies and developing agriculture. In these situations, international food aid does not always reach the civilian populations. Internal conflicts interrupt progress in countries, for example Uganda, which had achieved a measure of food security until civil war erupted.
About half of Africa’s nearly 700 million people live on les than $1 a day and most, about 80%, live on less than $2 a day and one in three Africans are malnourished.
Africa’s share of the world’s poorest people has increased from a quarter to nearly a third as income growth has barely kept pace with population growth, as it remains below 2.5%.
Africa is a highly diverse continent that has nearly a quarter of the world’s total land area but, despite its immense size, only 430 million acres, which is less than one fifth of the total land area of the United States, is suitable for farming. Land degradation is a major threat to the agricultural productivity growth in Africa.
Most African farmers are women and households so headed by a woman are more prone to hunger and poverty. As African women generate two thirds of Africa’s agricultural production, any efforts to develop agriculture and improve the amount of food in their households must focus on them. They also participate in trade and processing.
Sub-Saharan Africa is the one area of the world where hunger is both persistent and increasing.
African farmers are extremely vulnerable to drought flooding and political conflict as they are mostly small-holders. They are unable to invest in land improvements, irrigation and fertiliser because of their poverty.
AIDS is spreading rapidly and this also increases hunger. In some African countries, there are between 30 and 40% of adults who are infected. Infectious diseases continue to blight the lives of the poor across the world. Every year there are 350–500 million cases of malaria, with 1 million fatalities: Africa accounts for 90 percent of malarial deaths and African children account for over 80 percent of malaria victims worldwide
Eastern Africa, Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia are continuing to suffer from prolonged periods of drought. The pastoral regions of these countries are very vulnerable and almost 2 million people in the Horn of Africa received emergency rations in 2001 from the World Food Program.
Liked it
