The 2018 report on food crises gives estimates of the level of severe hunger faced by various countries in the world. While there are a multitude of factors that affect food security in the world, the World Food Report focuses only on the main drivers. The report shows that there has been an increase of 11 million people who need urgent and immediate food aid. This is largely attributed to intensified conflicts and continued droughts in many parts of the world. “The main drivers of food insecurity - conflict, displacement and climate shocks - along with outbreaks of diseases and limited access to basic services have created a bleak malnutrition situation in many countries”.
In 2017, conflict and extreme climate events have been the main drivers of food shocks. The acute food shortages in many countries, are directly tied to the lack of harvests which is influenced by lack of rain in some countries while others have been overrun by floods, and hurricanes in others. The short term estimate for 2018 suggests that conflict and enduring weather conditions will continue to contribute to the acute food crises in many regions.
The report also makes the observation that conflict and climate events often coalesce, to escalate fragile food security situations and also result in displacement. “The analysis in this report indicates that conflict and climate disasters have often occurred simultaneously, and several African countries – including Nigeria, Somalia and Sudan – have seen significant population displacement associated with both”.