Chad: a closer look at the food crisis
The current food crisis in Chad could affect 3.6 million people, writes guest blogger Alex Thurston.
The current food crisis in Chad could affect 3.6 million people, writes guest blogger Alex Thurston.
鈥� A version of this post ran on the author's blog, www.sahelblog.wordpress.com. The views expressed are the author's own.
The Sahel currently faces a food crisis that could affect as many as 15 million people, according to the United Nations's Food and Agriculture Organization.
As the above quotation indicates, Chad is one of the most affected countries. IRIN gives a ground-level perspective on the crisis, and sets Chad鈥檚 problems in the context of broader fallout from the civil war in Libya and the violence in Northern Nigeria:
Oxfam, meanwhile, has produced a video on the situation in Chad.
Both Oxfam and the United Nations are calling for millions of dollars to support relief efforts across the region.
The debate continues about how best to address the problem of food insecurity, with NPR recently showcasing new research on where relief organizations should purchase food supplies. The findings seem fairly common-sense to me:
The larger question about the region鈥檚 recurring food crises still remains, however: What is the best long-term strategy for reducing food insecurity? For Chad and many of its neighbors, that question is of crucial importance.
鈥� Alex Thurston is a PhD student studying Islam in Africa at Northwestern University and blogs at Sahel Blog.