harvest

Aid donors and southern African governments must take immediate and substantial action to help poor people cope with a rapidly-deteriorating regional food crisis, fuelled by El Nino-related drought and crop failures.

Zimbabwe has declared a 'state of disaster' regarding drought in the country that has been triggered by El Nino. With one in five Zimbabweans facing food struggles, Oxfam says this could shock the international community into action.

South Africa is facing its smallest maize harvest since 2007 this year as record-high temperatures and drought continue to hit its agricultural sector. According the government’s Crop Estimates Committee, only 7.44 million tons of maize is likely to be harvested in 2016 - that’s 25 percent less than the 9.94 million tons reaped.

A year after the fighting started in South Sudan the country remains in a severe food crisis with up to 2.5m people estimated to be at risk of hunger if the conflict continues, Oxfam warned today.

International aid agency Oxfam and leading West African farmers network ROPPA today welcomed an initial forecast of an improved harvest in the Sahel region but warned governments and the UN that the food crisis is far from over.