Hunger Crisis Fuelled by War

The world is currently facing an unprecedented hunger crisis fuelled by war. And those paying the highest price are the poorest and most vulnerable.

Today children in Syria, Yemen, Afghanistan and Sudan are battling for survival. Every day they face starvation and disease. Their challenges are unimaginable and only exacerbated by the conflict surrounding them.

Living in countries paralysed by war, they cannot access the food and medicines they desperately need to survive.

Right now, 40 million children are at risk of dying from hunger. Unless they receive immediate treatment like emergency food and therapeutic milk they will die.

A beneficiary carries his son who has been suffering from malnutrition in Yemen. 

Child malnutrition fact sheets

Yemen 

  • Malnutrition in Yemen is one of the first causes of child mortality.
  • This health issue is compounded by a scrambling health system, and limited knowledge about nutrition and children dietary needs.
  • Only 15 per cent of children are eating the minimum acceptable diet for survival, growth and development.

Sudan

  • Today, 60% of the country’s health services are no longer functioning. 
  • Farmers have been displaced and can no longer grow food. 
  • The price of what little food there is has sky-rocketed, putting even staples like wheat and flour out of reach of the poorest families. 
  • Without help, 50,000 children could die in Sudan from hunger alone. 

Afghanistan

  • Afghanistan has one of the world’s highest rates of stunting in children under five: 41 percent.
  • The rate of wasting, the extreme manifestation of severe acute malnutrition, in Afghanistan is extremely high: 9.5 per cent.
  • Only 12 per cent of Afghan children aged 6-24 months receive the right variety of food in the quantity needed for their age.

Every 60 seconds,
conflict pushes a child into starvation.

Send life-saving supplies

Habiba’s Fight for Survival

Habiba Saad, a 16-month-old Habiba Saad receives treatment for severe malnutrition in Aden Governorate, Yemen.

35-year-old Salamah Abdu, the mother, says. “My daughter suffers from malnutrition because my husband does not have a fixed job, as he works in the sea and his job is seasonal.”

Dr Aida Hussein Seddiq, the consultant paediatrician at Al-Sadaqah Hospital in Aden Governorate, reports on the development of Habiba Saad, a 16-month-old who suffers from severe malnutrition.

Dr Aida says, “The condition of the girl was completely unstable when she was referred to us.” She adds, “Habiba was provided oral rehydration therapy and antibiotics, in addition to therapeutic feeding treatment that is milk. This was the first stage, which took time. However, we expect her to gain more weight because we prescribed her milk with more calories.”

On 9 January 2023, a health worker and Salamah Abdu, 35, attend to Habiba Saad, a 16-month-old who suffers from severe malnutrition in Yemen.

RUTF: The Life-Saving Solution



Children with severe acute malnutrition have weakened immune systems and are at higher risk of dying from common childhood diseases. They are 12 times more likely to die than a well-nourished child.

But a miracle food costing just a few cents can save lives – even in the midst of a war. RUTF is an energy-dense, micronutrient paste. It has saved millions of children’s lives.

Parents can give it to their children at home or wherever they are staying. It requires no preparation and does not need to be mixed with water, meaning it is safe from contamination

€50 can supply enough peanut paste to treat five dangerously malnourished children. Will you make a life-saving donation today?

The child Ebtihal Muhammad, 7 months old, with her mother while eating a plumpy nut in Yemen. 

Make a Life-Saving Difference Today

For every child like Chinhial, there are more children who still need help. Please will you help them now?

  • With €50 you can provide 5 children with life-saving food for one week.
  • With €75 you can help treat 10 children with therapeutic milk for two weeks.
  • With €150 now you can supply 13 children with life-saving food and therapeutic milk for three weeks.

Choose your amount

 

You can send your donation by post to

Freepost; UNICEF Ireland, 33 Lower Ormond Quay, Dublin D01 R283.

In the unlikely event that the funds raised exceed UNICEF’s funding requirements for this appeal, your donation will be directed to where the need is greatest.

Help protect children
UNICEF | for every child

Stay Informed and Make a Difference

Add value to your inbox with inspiring updates on UNICEF's impactful work for children.

By signing up today you'll receive exclusive insights into the incredible difference you can make, programme updates, emergency appeals and unique opportunities to get involved.

Keep up-to-date on what's going on around the world. Sign up today!

You can update your communication preferences at any time. For further information please see our privacy policy.