The Anatomy of A Silent Crisis The Anatomy of A Silent Crisis

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24 Forum 2009: Climate Change – The Anatomy of a Silent Crisis First, many may not have enough crop production to feed their families. Second, the shortfall of their own crop may likely force them to buy food at a time when prices are high due to reduced global crop yields and population growth. Over 900 million are chronically hungry today—many of them due to climate change In 2008, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations estimated that more than 900 million are afflicted with hunger, or about 13 percent 70 of the global population. 71 Of those suffering from hunger, 94 percent 72 live in developing nations. 73 Most are subsistence farmers, landless families or people working in fishery or forestry. The remainder live in shanty towns on the fringes of urban areas. A quarter of the hungry are children. 73 Climate change is projected to be at the root of hunger and malnutrition for about 45 million people, as a result of reduced agricultural yields of cereals, fruits, vegetables, livestock and dairy, as well as the cash crops like cotton and fish which generate income. 34 For example, drought hurts crops in Africa where over 90 percent of farmers are small scale and about 65 percent of people’s primary source of income is agriculture. 74 By 2030, the number of hungry people because of climate change is expected to grow by more than two thirds Within 20 years, the number of hungry people as a result of climate change is projected to almost double to 75 million. 75 The reason for this increase is that the effects of climate change become more pronounced as temperatures rise. Within the same 20 years, climate change is projected to reduce global food production by approximately 50 million tons. 76 That, in turn, could force up global food prices by 20 percent. 76,77 In some parts of Africa climate change is expected to reduce yield up to 50 percent by 2020. 78 Historical evidence shows that higher food prices cause an immediate and direct jump in hunger levels. During the 2008 food crisis, the number of hungry people in the world increased by 40 million, primarily due to increased food prices. 71
Climate Impact Witness Joseph Kones, Kenya is a farmer in Mara Basin who has seen gradual climate change over the last 20 years. “When I was young, we used to have regular rains, but now it rains any time of the year. These changes started about 20 years ago. Food production in the area has gone down because people are not sure when to plant and even when they plant, they may not get rains at the right time. Farming in our area is not only for our food, we depend on agriculture for income too. Some people have even had to resort to food donations from the government, something that has not happened since I was born.” 25 Source: WWF EARPO
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Climate change is here. It has a hu
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The Anatomy of A Silent Crisis The Anatomy of A Silent Crisis

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