Up to 1 million people in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone could be “food insecure” by March because of disruptions to farming and marketing due to the Ebola virus, say two UN agencies, the World Food Program and the Food and Agriculture Organization. “Border closures, quarantines, hunting bans and other restrictions are seriously hindering people’s access to food, threatening their livelihoods, disrupting food markets and processing chains, and exacerbating shortages stemming from crop losses in areas with the highest Ebola infection rates,” says an FAO summary of conditions in the west African nations.
Already, 500,000 people are estimated “to be severely food insecure,” said FAO. Conditions are worst in areas hardest-hit by the disease. WFP and FAO said funding was needed to re-start the farming system in the region. “Measures should enable most severely affected people to access agricultural inputs, such as seeds and fertilizers, in time for the next planting season and adopt improved technology to address labor shortages,” they said, also recommending “cash transfers or vouchers for affected people to buy food as a way of overcoming their income loss and help stimulate markets.”