WEST AFRICA is facing its worst food crisis on record, leading international aid organisations have warned.

Drought and the rising price of food, partly driven by escalating oil prices blamed on the war in Ukraine, have severely impacted the availability of some staple products.

According to a damning statement from Oxfam, approximately 27 million people are suffering from hunger in the region and that figure could rise to 38 million by June this year.

In a joint statement, 11 international aid organisations including Oxfam and Save the Children, said the projected surge would be a 40 per cent increase from last year’s record high.

The warning comes ahead of today’s virtual conference on food and nutrition crisis in the Sahel and Lake Chad, organised by the Sahel and West Africa Club and European Union,

The groups are calling for urgent action to stop a humanitarian crisis.

Assalama Dawalack Sidi, Oxfam’s regional director for West and Central Africa, said: “In some parts of the Sahel, cereal production has dropped by about a third compared to last year.

“Family food supplies are running out. Drought, floods, conflict, and the economic impacts of COVID-19 have forced millions of people off their land, pushing them to the brink.”

Over the past decade, food crises have been increasing across the West African region, including in Burkina Faso, Niger, Chad, Mali, and Nigeria.

Between 2015 and 2022, the number of people in need of emergency food assistance nearly quadrupled, from 7 to 27 million.

Over the past five years, food prices have increased by 20-30 per cent in West Africa.

The ongoing war in Ukraine is also affecting prices of food in Africa.

According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), six West African countries import between 30-50 per cent of their wheat from Ukraine and Russia and these imports have been delayed as the crisis continues in Europe.

This latest statement, comes after a warning from the UN, said that more than 20 million people in eastern Africa are facing rising food insecurity and famine.

Climate change and an extreme weather condition known as La Niña, has prevented rain for a fourth season in the region, which has led to severe drought and food shortages. 

“We are most definitely now sitting on the brink of catastrophe,” said Rein Paulsen, director of emergencies and resilience at the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), last month. “Time is running out.”

According to weather forecasters, the Horn of Africa can expect rain later this month, but many experts fear it may be too late to save crops and livestock, as it has been the longest drought season the region has experienced in 40 years.