Great hunger looming

At least 34 million people in Third World countries are facing the spectre of a great hunger. The tragedy is already unfolding, as many are even now experiencing starvation. Experts say, “These people are not starving, they are being starved.” This is a serious indictment of those who have food far in excess of their own needs. The overfed consumers throw away considerable amounts of leftover food on garbage dumps, and unscrupulous traders destroy large quantities in order to maintain price stability in the international market. In the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, the World Food Programme has regularly been warning that the world will likely face an unprecedented humanitarian crisis in the form of famine and starvation in 2021. Of course, the pandemic is one of the reasons but the above-stated reasons too are significantly contributing to the growing inequity in entitlement to the most basic need of man.

More than 260 NGOs have sent an open letter to governments asking them to donate $5.5 billion to prevent millions from the sinister clutches of famine and the consequent hunger. In March, these NGOs had drawn the attention of the WFP and the Food and Agriculture Organisation to increase efforts to save large populations from the ravages of famine; and, among other things, they had mentioned the need for the amount. However, it has come as a shocking setback that very little donations have so far been received to prevent the worsening hunger situation. This reflects poorly on affluent countries and individuals. The fact that most countries affected or likely to be affected by hunger are facing war and civil strife, which reinforces the conviction that war produces starvation and many other ills. Climate change and the lack of appropriate actions to reverse the scourge too are contributing to the increasing food insecurity. For the most part, it is human actions that are leading us to our collective doom. We should not try to dominate others. We should help one another.