ADVERTISEMENT
Africanian
  • News
  • News 24/7
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Health
  • Sports
  • Travel
  • World
    • US
    • Russia
    • Europe
    • Asia
    • America
  • Events
No Result
View All Result
Africanian
No Result
View All Result
Home World America

FAO, warns that hunger and fatalities could rise significantly in urban areas

The food agency hopes, the COVID-19 pandemic could turn out to be a catalyst for positive transformation of the way that food systems are managed in urban areas

in America
Reading Time: 3 mins read
0 0
0
FAO, warns that hunger and fatalities could rise significantly in urban areas
0
SHARES
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare via Whatsapp

The UN food agency, FAO, warns that hunger and fatalities could rise significantly in urban areas, without measures to ensure that poor and vulnerable residents have access to food. In Latin America, cities are finding ways to keep food supplies flowing, despite the current restrictions on movement and supplies.

FAO, warns that hunger and fatalities could rise significantly in urban areas
A child and his mother, both Venezuelans, receive food aid from UNHCR in Lima (file), by UNHCR Peru

Several Latin American municipalities have been taking action to minimise the consequences of lockdown measures, and ensure that food systems do not break down, as work dries up.

In Quito, Ecuador, for example, authorities are using municipal buses as mobile food hubs, following the example of the Chinese city of Wuhan, where the pandemic is believed to have originated. Quito local government has also partnered with food banks, and mapped vulnerable areas, to make sure the food is distributed effectively.

In Lima, Peru, the supply of food products has been affected by the onset of the crisis, with restrictions on the movement of farmers put in place locally by city managers and leaders of rural communities.

There are fears that if these restrictions remain in place, the food supply chain in the city could be badly disrupted. For now, market prices have remained stable, but they are being monitored to counter speculation and price gouging on the black market, and a mobile wholesale market is distributing food to various districts of the metropolitan area.

More

Understanding Mental Fatigue: Strategies for Enhanced Productivity and Well-Being

Mexican Fintech Kapital Secures $40M in Series B Funding Round

Canada Doubles Financial Requirement for International Students

And, in Montevideo, Uruguay, the mantra has become, stay local, with citizens and organizations returning to “ollas populares”; a traditional model of home deliveries of fruit, vegetable and other foodstuffs, some directly from producers, with special attention paid to the needs of vulnerable people.

Feeding the system

FAO, warns that hunger and fatalities could rise significantly in urban areas
The Lo Valledor main wholesale market in Chile during the COVID-19 pandemic, by © FAO/Max Valencia
These kind of initiatives reflect the warning from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), that the health risk for many urban citizens is high during the pandemic, particularly the 1.2 billion who live in slums, and other informal settlements.

Responses to the pandemic by city authorities worldwide, have included closing markets and small shops – making it harder for poorer citizens, who can’t afford supermarket prices or delivery services, to buy food, and for those dependent on jobs in the food industry to make ends meet. Spikes in food prices can also occur, says the FAO, leading to civil unrest, as seen in many African cities during the 2007-2008 food crises.

Scale up support

To mitigate these side-effects of lockdown measures, FAO recommends scaling up support for schemes that distribute food to vulnerable people; improving access to nutritious food for all; and promoting education campaigns to help citizens reduce food waste and buy food responsibly.

In addition, the UN Food agency makes a series of recommendations to improve the food supply situation in the short-term. For example, cities should use technology to map vulnerable people and their access to food, in order to develop more effective programmes.

And, whilst food stores are often named as essential services, strategies should be put in place to allow markets to stay open; and food chains should also be designated as essential, so that workers and producers can continue circulating, whilst respecting health regulations.

Important questions to answer

FAO, warns that hunger and fatalities could rise significantly in urban areas
A crop of sorghum in Uruguay (file), by FAO/Sandro Cespoli

But what lessons will be learned, once the worst of the crisis is behind us? For the FAO, the pandemic has exposed several severe, underlying failings of urban food systems, and the paper proposes a number of improvements that should be put in place, to ensure that cities are much better prepared for the next potential health crisis.

One example, which chimes with environmental concerns, is the promotion of local food suppliers. The pandemic has made sourcing food from international sources more difficult, providing local suppliers with an opportunity to coordinate better and fill gaps in food distribution, and make cities more resilient.

Other recommendations include maintaining initiatives such as food hubs (which could have the added advantage of reducing congestion and carbon emissions), and studying ways to scale up e-commerce, in a way that facilitates access to food for all.

In these ways, hopes the FAO, the COVID-19 pandemic could turn out to be a catalyst for positive transformation of the way that food systems are managed in urban areas.

Source: un.org
africanian

africanian

  • Trending
  • Comments
  • Latest
Weather in Morocco: Climate, Seasons and Average Temperature

Weather in Morocco: Climate, Seasons and Average Temperature

August 25, 2020
Weather in South Africa: Climate and Seasons

Weather in South Africa: Climate and Seasons

August 25, 2020
Weather in Kenya: Climate, Seasons, and Average Temperature

Weather in Kenya: Climate, Seasons and Average Temperature

August 26, 2020
Equatorial Guinea: United Nations team Resident Coordinator visits Dreams Hub

Equatorial Guinea: United Nations team Resident Coordinator visits Dreams Hub

June 16, 2025
OIF and Dreams Hub open new green opportunities for youth and women in Equatorial Guinea

OIF and Dreams Hub open new green opportunities for youth and women in Equatorial Guinea

June 16, 2025
Somalia: the female revolution building cities

Somalia: the female revolution building cities

June 14, 2025
Twitter Instagram Youtube Facebook
No Result
View All Result

Africanian News

Is a dedicated project aimed at amplifying the voices of the African Ecosystem and Diaspora. We actively collaborate with initiatives to improve access to education and digital inclusion, both in traditional schools and through digital platforms, for African children.

It’s crucial to emphasize that none of the articles or images featured on our platform are intended for copyright infringement, neither now nor in the future. If you believe that any information, text, image, etc., may be subject to copyright and should be removed, please notify us by sending an email to [email protected]

Your dreams matter; your stories matter.

Feel free to explore collaboration opportunities with us. Share your articles, thoughts, interviews, experiments, or no-comment videos by reaching out to [email protected]. You can also subscribe to our mailing list to receive the latest updates from Africanian News.

© 2024 Africanian News: From Africa, by Africans, for Africa, and friends of Africa.

No Result
View All Result
  • News
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Health
  • Sports
  • Entertainment
  • Tech
  • Travel
  • World

© 2024 Africanian News: From Africa, by Africans, for Africa, and friends of Africa.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password? Sign Up

Create New Account!

Fill the forms below to register

All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In

Log In

Sign In

Forgot password?

Don't have an account? Register

Forgot password?

Enter your account data and we will send you a link to reset your password.

Back to Login

Your password reset link appears to be invalid or expired.

Log in

Privacy Policy

Accept

Add to Collection

  • Public collection title

  • Private collection title

No Collections

Here you'll find all collections you've created before.