The ECOWAS area facing the 2021 food and nutrition crisis

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Published : June 2021

For the second consecutive year, several ECOWAS Member States are facing a major food and nutrition crisis. According to the March and June 2021 estimates of the Cadre harmonisé, at the beginning of the lean season 2021, the number of acutely-food insecure people in the ECOWAS area may reach 24.8 million people; nearly half of them are based in Nigeria (12.8 million). This represents a new peak for the ECOWAS area. Moreover, an additional 63 million people are currently “under pressure” (phase 2) and could fall into a crisis situation if appropriate measures are not taken. The nutrition situation remains precarious in most Sahelian countries due to limited access to health centres as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic and the security crisis. Vulnerable populations remain concentrated in the conflict-affected areas of northeastern Nigeria (4.3 million) and the Liptako-Gourma area (3.2 million).

Authors : SWAC/OECD Secretariat

Countries : Benin, Burkina Faso, Cabo Verde, Côte d'Ivoire, ECOWAS area, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Liptako-Gourma, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Togo

Themes : Agriculture & Value chains, Food security, Markets, prices & trade, Nutrition, Resilience, Social protection

Scale : Cross-border, Regional (West Africa)

Langs : English