Several million people are likely to face a serious food crisis next year in West AfricaÂ?s eastern Sahel region notably in Chad and Niger , the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has said.
Late and erratic rainfall in September and October, a period critical to crop development, has meant there will be a shortfall of food in this region that is between the Sahara desert and the forest parts of sub saharan Africa.
Authorities in Chad have announced a 34 percent fall in cereal production compared to 2008 and Niger has said it's production is down 24 percent.
"The impact of all of this will be higher food prices on the market which will significantly limit the access to food for most households," Thomas Yanga, WFPÂ?s regional director for West Africa told AlertNet.
He said that he expected households to use up their food suply by March, two months earlier than normal.
The Sahel belt which includes Niger, Chad, Burkina Faso, Mali and Senegal has a combined population of over 76 million and is prone to droughts and insect infestations that often lead to food shortages.
In 2005 a severe food crisis in Niger affected 3.6 million people, among them 800,000 children as a consequence of drought and locust invasion.
WFP says it is working with governments to assess expected food needs and prepare adequate response in a region where malnutrition rates are already above the 30 percent emergency threshold set by the World Health Organisation.
"We are also recommending that governments start preparing for the next agricultural season by improving access to agricultural inputs for small farmers hoping that the rains will be abundant and well distributed next year," Yanga said.
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
