hunger

In reaction to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) report published today on Gaza warning of a risk of famine if intense hostilities and restricted humanitarian access persist or worsen, Sally Abi Khalil, Oxfam’s Middle East and North Africa Regional Director, said: “Gaza’s shocking descent into starvation was so predictable as to be premeditated, an ongoing war crime by the Government of Israel."

Over a third of the Yemeni population are facing extreme hunger, with rates of child malnutrition amongst the highest in the world. One year on from the expiration of the temporary peace agreement, Oxfam in Yemen is calling on all sides of the conflict to strive for a sustainable and inclusive peace, and for cuts to the international aid effort to be reversed. 

In reaction to the publicaiton today of the FAO’s “State of Food Insecurity and Nutrition in the World 2023” report, stating that up to 783 million people faced hunger in 2022, and that 600 million persons will be chronically undernourished in 2030, Hanna Saarinen, Oxfam International Food Policy Lead said:  “It is unforgivable for governments to watch millions of people going hungry in a world of plenty, as they put the interests of mega-rich agribusinesses and energy companies before those of the most vulnerable people and widen the inequality gap.  

722 of the world’s biggest corporations together raked in over $1 trillion in windfall profits each year for the past two years amid soaring prices and interest rates, while billions of people are having to cut back or go hungry. 

The world spent yearly an estimated $112 billion on arms imports between 2018-2022, even as 9,000 people die each day from hunger driven primarily by conflict. The top five-arms exporters – the USA, Russia, France, China and Germany - which account for over three-quarters of the global arms trade, together sold an estimated $85 billion worth of arms yearly.  

Max Lawson, Oxfam International's Head of Inequality Policy at Oxfam, said: "The G7 had failed the Global South here in Hiroshima.  They failed to cancel debts, and they failed to find what is really required to end the huge increase in hunger worldwide. They can find untold billions to fight the war but can’t even provide half of what is needed by the UN for the most critical humanitarian crises."

Wealthy Group of Seven (G7) countries owe low- and middle-income countries $13.3 trillion in unpaid aid and funding for climate action, reveals new analysis from Oxfam ahead of the G7 Summit in Hiroshima, Japan.

In reaction to the GRFC 2023, Oxfam Global Food and Economic Security Lead, Emily Farr, said:  “For global hunger to rise for a fourth consecutive year in a world of plenty is a stain on our collective humanity. Decades of progress made to end poverty and hunger are being fast-reversed by conflict, economic shocks, and climate change.  

In reaction to the Virtual High-Level Pledging Event on the Humanitarian Crisis in Yemen, which took place today, where international donors pledged only around $1.2 billion out of the total $4.3 billion UN's appeal for the country, Ferran Puig, Oxfam’s Country Director in Yemen, said: “The money pledged today is nowhere near enough. The world must not look away while Yemen faces a humanitarian crisis - the consequence of doing so will be tragic."

Despite promises, nearly three-quarters of African governments reduced their agricultural budgets while paying almost double that on arms.