1 in 11 people worldwide suffered from hunger in 2023, including 282 million who needed urgent food assistance. Six years away from the “Zero Hunger” deadline of the UN Sustainable Development Goals aiming to create a world free from hunger by 2030, levels of food insecurity worldwide remain very high, despite a slight improvement of the situation in Latin America¹. Food distribution is the most covered emergency action, but it represents only the most visible part of the response to food crises.
While economic shocks and climate change continue to aggravate the situation, armed conflicts remain the main causes of food crises in 2024. Indeed, they prevent access to food, destroy agricultural land and infrastructures, and affect supply chains. International humanitarian law states that warring parties have a duty to protect “objects indispensable to the survival of the civilian population”, including foodstuffs, drinking water and agricultural infrastructures. Unfortunately, these rights are still too often violated.
In Sudan for example, ongoing clashes have forced millions of people to displace, leading to severe food insecurity for more than 1/3 of the population. According to the Famine Review Committee (FRC), 10% of the population of the Zamzam IDP camp in North Darfur State is still expected to be in a famine situation (IPC Phase 5)² based on the projection State is still expected to be in a famine situation (IPC Phase 5) based on the projection for the upcoming months (see map below). This means that at least 1 in 5 household is sorely lacking food and is facing hunger and deprivation, leading to extremely critical levels of acute malnutrition and death.
The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) provides a scale
for classifying the severity and magnitude of food security and acute malnutrition.
IPC projection in Sudan from October 2024 to February 2025.
As for the situation in the Gaza Strip, restrictions on humanitarian access, preventing the delivery of food aid, exacerbate catastrophic levels of food insecurity. 22% of the population is in IPC Phase 5, facing an imminent risk of famine³.
How Does Food Assistance Work?
The “in-kind” food assistance modality is used in contexts where food markets do not function or are not accessible by the population for insecurity reasons, for example. NGOs thus ensure the purchase and transport of food to the populations in need. But in the case of Sudan, in the areas where food markets are still supplied and accessible, but poverty and inflation prevent families from buying enough to subsist, food assistance via “cash transfers” is possible.
Cash transfer activity in Sudan – © SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL
Today, many NGOs, such as SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL, use this form of assistance. Money or vouchers are distributed to people who can then go and buy the food they need, according to their personal preferences and from their usual traders. This modality better respects people’s autonomy, dignity and freedom of choice. It is very different from “in-kind” food aid, which generally consists of the distribution of a food kit. To receive these single-composition kits, beneficiary households have to wait their turn, often for several hours, at distribution sites. In the case of “cash” assistance, the money from humanitarian aid is also “reinvested” in local markets, which are also impacted by shocks (conflicts, inflation, etc.) and need their usual customers to continue to function.
Supporting Local Food Markets as Urgent as Food Assistance
Supporting food markets does not immediately save lives, unlike food assistance. However, the existence of functional food markets can reduce the risk of intensifying the food crisis in the short to medium term, and even make a sustainable contribution to the population’s food security. In addition to ensuring the availability of food, these markets support an entire local economy and provide jobs throughout the food chain: from agricultural production to transport, processing and sales of food products. Humanitarian actors therefore have a role to play in supporting food markets.
Thus in Sudan, SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL launched a project to support local traders through providing equipment or cash to revive their commercial activities, helping to transport goods or rehabilitating storage spaces in markets. The NGO’s objective is to be able to increase the availability and diversity of food on local markets while reducing the risk of price inflation.
In northeastern Syria, SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL provided economic support in the town of Tabqa. Two key markets were rehabilitated (setting up sustainable roofing, a sanitation and lighting system, etc.) and shopkeepers received material support as well as business management trainings. Finally, the population benefited from a more stable supply of products at reasonable prices, notably vegetables, fruit and dairy products.
In the current context of reduced humanitarian funding, the tendency of many donors is to focus on financing what they consider to be “lifesaving” assistance. This is the case of emergency food distribution which is essential, but costly and a short-term solution.
It is important that donors maintain their funding for food markets support in their emergency responses to food crises, even when budgets are tight.
¹ FAO. (2024). The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2024
² IPC_Famine_Review_Committee_Report_Sudan_July2024.pdf (ipcinfo.org)
³ IPC_Famine_Review_Committee_Report_Gaza_June2024.pdf (ipcinfo.org)