Namibia joins list of hunger hotspots

Namibia has joined a list of 22 countries identified as hunger hotspots, in which acute food insecurity is likely to further deteriorate.



This is according to a new United Nations (UN) report, titled ‘Hunger Hotspots – FAO-WFP Early Warnings on Acute Food Insecurity’.



The report was issued by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP).



It notes that acute food insecurity, in terms of both magnitude and severity across 22 countries, is set to increase.



The UN reports that this is due to the spread of conflict, coupled with climate change and economic stressors, which are pushing millions of people to the brink.



The UN further warns that the La Niña weather pattern could impact climates through March 2025, threatening fragile food systems in already vulnerable regions.



The report calls for urgent humanitarian action to save lives and livelihoods and prevent starvation and death in hotspots where acute hunger is at high risk of worsening between November 2024 and May 2025.



Since the previous edition of the ‘Hunger Hotspots’ report in June 2024, Kenya, Lesotho, Namibia and Niger have joined the list of hunger hotspots, alongside Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Malawi, Somalia, Zambia and Zimbabwe, where acute food insecurity is likely to deteriorate further during the outlook period.



The UN notes that following widespread and intense drought experienced earlier this year, countries in southern Africa like Lesotho, Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe, face flood risks, reflecting forecasts of above-average rainfall.



Meanwhile, the report further notes that Namibia is expected to continue experiencing drier-than-normal conditions.



“The widespread and intense drought experienced earlier in 2024, and induced by El Niño, compounded by macroeconomic challenges, is driving a sharp rise in acute food insecurity across Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe during the outlook period,” notes the UN.