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Food security situation "alarming" - report

[Lesotho] Farmer Ntsane Moshoeshoe's crops, like many in Lesotho, have been badly affected by frost, heavy rains and drought. IRIN
Two consecutive poor harvests has led to food shortages
The food security situation in Lesotho is "alarming", with low crop production causing a sharp increase in prices, says the UN Regional Inter-Agency Coordination Support Office (RIACSO). In its bi-monthly report, RIACSO noted that the latest Lesotho Vulnerability Assessment Committee (LVAC) survey had found that "as a result of low production, food prices have gone up between 20 and 50 percent, with the highest price increases recorded in remote areas". The LVAC carried out a livelihood vulnerability monitoring exercise between 3 and 11 March. "The report predicts an alarming situation that requires immediate contingency planning. The southern Lowlands are said to be the worst affected area, with a deficit in food needs of more than 40 percent. Peri-urban areas are, according to the report, least affected in terms of their livelihoods. Nonetheless, a 24.5 percent food deficit in these areas is still expected," RIACSO said. Late and poor rains had resulted in a decrease in area under cultivation, which would be "significantly less than last year, as well as compared to the five-year average". "Cereal production is therefore expected to be insufficient," the report cautioned. In terms of livelihoods, "the adverse weather conditions have had a negative impact on the production of rain-fed cash crops". The LVAC also found that "as the cultivated areas are down, due to lack of rainfall, informal and formal employment opportunities have been equally affected". The UN has warned that hundreds of thousands of people in Lesotho will require food aid for a third consecutive year as they struggle with the devastating effects of drought, the HIV/AIDS epidemic and economic hardships. The government declared a state of emergency in February and appealed for international assistance. The World Food Programme had earlier confirmed that the number of people in need of food aid in Lesotho rose from 375,000 to 600,000, but poor winter harvests and the late onset of planting-season rains will bring an even greater need for food aid over the next few months.

This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

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