The food security situation in Ethiopia is worsening, says the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization, and as the main growing season approaches, 10.2 million people are affected by successive crop failures and livestock deaths caused by drought since 2015.
“Recent estimates by Ethiopia’s Bureau of Agriculture indicate that some 1.7 million farming families are seed insecure, meaning they do not have the inputs required to plant in the meher season, which starts as early as mid-June for some crops, with planting ongoing until August for others,” said FAO. “For many households, seed reserves are extremely depleted following unsuccessful planting and re-planting in 2015, while families in the most affected areas have been forced to consume their seeds as food.”
According to FAO, some 224 districts — nearly a third of the country — are food insecure, an increase of 20 percent from January. Ethiopia has a population of nearly 100 million and is the second-most populous nation in Africa.
“Following the late onset and poor performance of … rainfall throughout March, rainfall since early April has significantly improved and reduced rainfall shortages,” said the U.S.-funded Famine Early Warning Network. The number of malnourished children admitted to feeding programs was up 47 percent in February compared to one year earlier, it said.