Guatemala Food Shortages Affect 400,000 Families
by SARAH NELSON, Contributing Writer
“Adverse weather, poor soil and a slumping global economy” are being cited as the key contributors to the continued food crisis in Guatemala. The country’s President, Alvaro Colom, declared the situation in Guatemala a "state of public calamity". The president’s remarks were made in an effort to generate support and mobilize resources to address the growing food crisis. Current estimates show that approximately 400,000 families are at risk for food insecurity. To put that into perspective – if the average family consists of four individuals, that would be about 1.6 million people directly affected by this crisis. That is more than ten percent of the 13.2 million total population.
The drought in Guatemala, due largely in part to affects from El Niño, is the worst the country has seen in more than 70 years. Scarce crop return and inflated food prices make it difficult for Guatemala’s poor to afford food. In his remarks last week, President Colom stated, "There is food, what is lacking is the money for the affected people to buy food. We are not going to wait until we’ve reached starvation levels to act." Guatemala’s failure to control the food shortage in the country has also been attributed to country’s unequal distribution of wealth. More than half of Guatemala’s population, approximately 56 percent, currently live below the poverty line.
President Colom has asked the international community to provide the $110 million needed to provided food for the families affected. In response, the United Nations World Food Program (WFP) has launched a distribution effort of 20 tons of nutritional cookies to Guatemala’s most affected areas. WFP Executive director, Josette Sheeran, expressed her concern for the situation in Guatemala, identifying women and children as the primary victims in the crisis. In August of this year, the WFP efforts in Guatemala were threatened by funding cutbacks by the organization. A fortified food blend called VitaCereal has been a mainstay for pregnant and nursing mothers affected by the food crisis. WFP is in need of $5 million to continue local production of the foodstuff. Approximately half of Guatemalan children under the age of five suffer from chronic malnutrition and it’s adverse effects.
Donate online to the World Food Program, whose tight budget is hindering the relief efforts in Guatemala. Let your friends and family know that you’re helping, they might be inspired to contribute too!
Photo by auntjojo, flickr.
- Posted by Causecast
Related causes: Health, Human Rights
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