(Security): "Sharp increase" in hunger in Tigray Region, Ethiopia - UN

According to the UN, the number of people suffering from severe malnutrition in Tigray, the war-torn region of northern Ethiopia, has risen sharply and the situation is set to worsen.

In a report released on Monday, July 3, 2023, OCHA, the UN humanitarian agency, estimates that some 8.8 million people need food aid in northern Ethiopia, not counting the millions more affected by drought in the south and southeast.

An agreement signed in November 2022 between the government and Tigrayan rebels ended two years of conflict, allowing aid to arrive slowly, but the region reported "a sharp increase in cases" of patients suffering from complications due to undernutrition.

In April 2023, compared with April 2022, "admissions for severe malnutrition in Tigray increased by 196%", according to the report, which points out that these figures may be "partly attributable to improved access to health facilities".

Across the country, OCHA notes a 15% increase in "admissions for acute malnutrition" between January and April, compared with the same period in 2022.

In Tigray, the UN agency also fears "a worsening of food insecurity among vulnerable population groups, following the suspension of food distributions due to reports of significant detour of humanitarian food aid".

Some 20 million people in Ethiopia depend on food aid, according to OCHA.

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