A third of Malawi’s population is on the brink of extreme hunger

Responding to new IPC figures on food insecurity in Malawi, Save the Children’s Country Director in Malawi, Kim Koch, said:

“A third of Malawi’s population – 5.4 million out of 16.6 million people – is on the brink of extreme hunger according to new IPC figures, due to poverty and recurrent shocks to the food system. We know that across Africa, the climate crisis is causing more frequent and severe extreme weather events that disrupt harvests, and that the war in Ukraine is propelling the world’s existing food crises into yet further catastrophe. Sadly Malawi is not escaping the worsening hunger crisis that is blighting the region and other parts of the world.

“When families go hungry it is often children who bear the brunt, through being pulled out of school to work to support their families or falling victim to early marriage. A lack of nutrients for very young children can also lead to malnutrition that can have fatal consequences. We need urgent intervention for this hunger crisis.”

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