Over 64pc Rohingyas severely food insecure
More than 64 percent of the Rohingya refugees and host community members in Cox's Bazar are severely food insecure, according to the Global Report on Food Crises 2022, prepared by World Food Programme (WFP).
In numbers, over 1.26 million of this population are between moderately and severely food insecure, stated the report. Just in the previous year (2020), the number was slightly less and stood at 1.2 million.
"The lack of income sources and livelihood opportunities compels nearly all (95 percent) of Rohingya households to be entirely dependent on humanitarian assistance," said the report released on May 4.
The current level of humanitarian assistance is not enough for 51 percent of the population to afford the "minimum expenditure basket" or the amount of expenditure needed to meet the basic needs of a household.
The global report also mentioned that this food insecurity has resulted in more than half the children being anaemic.
Approximately 11.4 percent of the children of this population have a low weight-to-height ratio.
The grim numbers came to the fore at a time when humanitarian assistance allocated to food sectors is at an all-time low.
"In 2020, the humanitarian assistance allocated to food sectors in 55 food crisis-prone countries and territories was the lowest recorded in five years, even though the number of acutely food insecure people was the highest," said the report.
The report also mentioned that while funding for humanitarian food assistance has been falling since 2017, the current shortfall is particularly stark due to the Covid-19-induced economic slowdown and prioritisation of the public health response to the pandemic.
"Domestic food price inflation in many low-income countries rose significantly, particularly those with weak currencies and a high reliance on food imports, in those where border closures, conflict or insecurity disrupted trade flows and where weather extremes severely curtailed food production/availability," it added.
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