Climate change set to ‘increase hunger’ in Africa: UN

Climate change set to ‘increase hunger’ in Africa: UN

Sharm el Sheikh - As COP27 delegates in Egypt debate planet-heating emissions, the climate crisis is exacerbating devastating hunger across several African nations and will worsen further without urgent action, the UN said Wednesday.

"If drastic measures are not taken urgently, hunger will increase as climate change is felt everywhere, most intensely in vulnerable areas, such as Sudan," said Zitouni Ould-Dada, from the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO).

Sudan is among the East African nations facing "acute food insecurity", the Famine Early Warnings Systems Network warned earlier this month, highlighting the dire situation, especially in Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia.

As the COP27 summit opened, a joint statement from over a dozen UN agencies and major charities warned the Horn of Africa was gripped by the "longest and most severe drought in recent history", warning that parts of Somalia are "projected to face famine".

Africa is home to some of the countries least responsible for carbon emissions but hardest hit by an onslaught of weather extremes.

Sudan, like many other countries on the continent, has been hit hard in recent years by erratic weather patterns -- harsh droughts and searing temperatures followed by torrential rains.

Around a third of the population, over 15 million people,