Between July and September 2019, 2.2 million people, almost 18 percent of the total population, are expected to face severe food insecurity. The projected food insecure caseload is 40 percent higher than the estimate at the beginning of 2019, as drought conditions are severely affecting crop and livestock production and disrupting livelihoods. Household resilience has been undermined by recurrent climatic shocks, overstretched social support networks and declining humanitarian assistance. Urgent...

Food markets in 2019/20 are bracing for some additional uncertainties beyond their own fundamentals. A fast-changing trade environment and the rapid spread of African Swine Fever constitute important challenges to overcome. However, prospects point to generally well supplied markets, which is seen to contribute to a lower food import bill in 2019.

International prices of wheat and maize declined further in April, mostly on account of abundant exportable supplies and the good 2019 global production prospects. International prices of rice remained generally stable. In East Africa, concerns over the impact of severe dry and hot weather conditions on the 2019 crops underpinned the sharp increases of maize prices registered in several countries in April. In the Sudan and South Sudan, prices of...

The Banana Statistical compendium, issued once a year, contains information on global banana trade. Its sources include information provided by FAO member nations, traders, news bulletins and the opinions of commodity specialists and represents the most authoritative and up-to-date source of information on the world banana economy.

At request of the government, a joint FAO/WFP rapid Food Security Assessment Mission (rFSA) visited DPRK from 29 March to 12 April 2019. The overall objective of the joint FAO/WFP mission was to conduct an independent assessment of the 2018 production shortfall and the food security situation in the country. Provision of accurate, timely and credible information through this exercise is critical to inform appropriate interventions by the government, the...

In Central America, the El Niño phenomenon is generally associated with below-average rains and prolonged dry spells. The 2019 January-March dry season in the subregion was drier than usual due to the presence of El Niño, which affected production of the 2018 third season maize crop in Guatemala. There is a high likelihood that the El Niño phenomenon could persist in the May-July period, which coincides with the planting and...

Severe dryness prevailed in March 2019 and in the first half of April in large parts of Eastern Africa, as the Tropical Cyclone “Idai” redirected precipitations away from the subregion. Weather forecasts previously pointed to average to above-average March-May rains, but subsequent updates predicted dry conditions in April and a mixed performance of rains in May depending on the locality. The current dry weather conditions are severely affecting pastoral areas,...

International prices of wheat and maize fell in March, mostly on account of abundant export supplies. International prices of rice were only mildly firmer, as weak demand by a number of countries capped increases in the Japonica and lower quality Indica markets. In Southern Africa, extensive damage to cropped land and infrastructure caused by Cyclone Idai could trigger temporary food price spikes in Malawi and Mozambique, as well as Zimbabwe,...