World powers urged to give one day's military spending to fight hunger
More than 250 humanitarian organisations have called on world powers to drastically step up food aid efforts this year to address "human actions that are driving famine and hunger".
The groups, in an open letter on Tuesday, said that more than 34 million people are currently on the brink of starvation, while up to 270 million are "acutely food insecure".
"Every day, we work with people who are fully capable of producing or earning enough to feed themselves and their families. These people are not starving, they are being starved," the groups said.
'There is no place for famine and starvation in the 21st century'
- NGO letter
Highlighting the combined impacts of conflict, climate change and inequality, coupled with the Covid-19 crisis, the groups laid out the reality of the acute food insecurity situation around the world and slammed world governments for cutting aid during the past several years despite an increase in need.
Although the UN warned of "famines of biblical proportions" exactly one year ago, global leaders have funded just five percent of the UN's $7.8bn food security appeal for 2021, the International Rescue Committee (IRC), one of the signatories of the letter, highlighted in an accompanying statement.
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"Every day, we share stories and evidence of hunger, starvation, and increasing humanitarian needs. Yet this does not prompt urgent action or sufficient funding," the organisations said in Tuesday's letter.
"The widening gap between the great needs we face and the limited assistance we are able to provide threatens to steal what hope remains. We cannot allow all hope to be lost," the groups said.
'History will judge us'
To address this year's global food crisis, the UN's World Food Programme (WFP) and Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) have estimated that at least $5.5bn is needed in urgent food and agricultural assistance, while "millions more is needed to provide health care, clean water and other essential, basic services".
The IRC noted that the $5.5bn these groups have requested "is equivalent to less than 26 hours of the $1.9 trillion that countries spend each year on the military".
"Yet, as more and more people go to bed hungry, conflict is increasing," it continued.
In Tuesday's letter, the organisations said that aid is needed "immediately" to feed people who are already starving.
"All countries should contribute their full and fair share, without diverting resources from meeting other pressing humanitarian needs," the letter reads.
"It is human actions that are driving famine and hunger and it is our actions that can stop the worst impacts. We all have a part to play. But you, as Leaders, States and main duty bearers, have a unique responsibility. We call on you to take action now."
"There is no place for famine and starvation in the 21st century. History will judge us all by the actions we take today."
Gabriela Bucher, executive director at Oxfam, another signatory of the letter, said the slashing of food aid, as millions go hungry, has been "an extraordinary political failure".
"They must urgently reverse these decisions. And we must confront the fundamental drivers of starvation – global hunger is not about lack of food, but a lack of equality," Bucher said.
'Lives will be lost'
The International Council of Voluntary Agencies (ICVA), a coalition of 100 NGO members operating in 160 countries, also issued a statement alongside Tuesday's letter, stressing the need for action as well as funding.
Mitigating famine "cannot be achieved unless bilateral donors recommit to scaling-up aid to save lives", the ICVA warned.
"However, in stark contrast to the situation at hand, global attention and funding for famine mitigation and prevention has been dwindling," it continued.
"Funding alone is not sufficient. Action must be taken to end conflicts and ensure humanitarian access. The situation requires urgent action, at a scale we are simply not seeing. If no urgent action is taken, lives will be lost."
The ICVA highlighted needs in Yemen, South Sudan and Burkina Faso, where people are already living in famine or famine-like conditions.
Noting that conflict is the main driver of hunger and barrier to meeting needs, it stressed that "responsibility to address this lies with States".
"States must provide resources to meet needs today and prevent increasing need tomorrow," the statement continued.
"This necessitates that we join forces to ring the alarm bells by showcasing the need on the ground through all available channels. It is imperative that we raise our collective voices to secure the international attention this cause deserves before it is too late."
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