Food and war: 21 thousand people die every day in countries where there is shooting or bombs fall

ROMA – Every day between 7 and 21 thousand people literally die of hunger in countries torn by conflict. It is the complaint of new relationship released today by Oxfamon the occasion of World Food Day. Almost all of the 281.6 million people suffering from acute malnutrition in the world live in 54 countries affected by war. Wars which are also one of the main causes of the record level of displaced people in the world, to date over 117 million.

Hunger as a powerful weapon of war. “In many of the countries in conflict, hunger is increasingly used as a weapon of war – recalls Francesco Petrelli, spokesperson and political consultant for food security of Oxfam Italy – it must also be remembered that the systematic destruction of essential infrastructure for the supply of energy and drinking water is contrary to every rule of international law and is exponentially increasing the suffering of millions of people”.

The tragedy of Gaza. “In the Strip at this moment almost half a million people are dying of hunger – adds Paolo Pezzati, spokesperson for the humanitarian crises of Oxfam Italy – a humanitarian catastrophe due to the blocking of the entry of 83% of the food aid needed by the population. In 2023, 34% were blocked, so we went on average from two meals a day before the start of the conflict, to one every two days.”

Raw materials, wars and hunger in Africa and Central America. The impact of the war on the availability of food – the report also denounces – is causing an equally serious catastrophe in Sudan, where at the moment over 750 thousand people are literally dying of hunger. Yet the country – like 34 others out of the 54 analyzed – is rich in natural resources and raw materials, focusing its economy on their export. Suffice it to say that 95% of Sudan’s export earnings come from gold and livestock; 87% of those in South Sudan from petroleum products; almost 70% of those in Burundi come from coffee. In Central America, however, increasingly extensive mining projects have provoked violent conflicts, forcing entire communities to abandon their homes.

Hunger and the climate crisis. Conflicts – the dossier continues – often add to other factors such as climate shocks, economic instability and inequalities, devastating the livelihoods of local populations. The food crisis affecting eastern and southern Africa is caused by a succession of increasingly intense and frequent droughts and floods, which have been added to the surge in food prices globally, following the end of the pandemic and the crisis in Ukraine. And the first to pay the price of all this are women and children.

The UN Security Council must speak up. “While the goal of eliminating hunger by 2030 remains unattainable – continues Petrelli – we launch an urgent appeal to the UN Security Council, to ask it to take account of the continuous violations of international law that continue to be committed in war contexts such as Gaza with impunity. Hunger cannot and must no longer be used as a weapon to bring an entire population to its knees. To break this vicious circle it is essential to jointly address the underlying causes of ongoing conflicts and not just offer temporary solutions.”

The appeal to the G7 and development ministers. In view of the meeting of G7 development ministers on 22 October which will focus on the operational implementation of the Apulia Food Systems Initiative (AFSI), Oxfam together with global civil society, gathered in Civil7therefore strongly requests that the decisions that will be taken, especially in terms of investments:

– promote an agro-ecological model;

fight financial speculation on food with new rules;

– encourage the participation in decisions of small farmers in the countries of the global south;

– honor the financial commitments of the G7 countries to respond to the UN appeals on the ongoing food crises, which to date are completely insufficient.