New York, February 13, 2024 – The ongoing climate crisis and conflict have reversed progress aimed at ending hunger worldwide as more people go to bed hungry while food prices remain high, UN officials told a Security Council meeting on global peace and security.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said climate and conflict have become “leading drivers” of the global food crisis, displacement of people, destruction of agriculture and damage to infrastructure. Climate chaos alone has imperiled global food production and was the main causes of acute food insecurity for almost 174 million people in 2022.

The World Food Program estimated that over 330 million people were affected in 2023 and warned of an acute deterioration in 18 “hunger hotspots” early in 2024.

“I am dismayed to say that our world today is teeming with examples of the devastating relationship between hunger and conflict,” Guterres said.

The UN chief and heads of UN agencies said 13 million people in Syria go to bed hungry after the country suffered 10 years of war and deadly earthquakes while in Myanmar conflict and political instability have reversed progress on ending hunger.

“In Gaza, no one has enough to eat,” Guterres said. “Of the 700,000 hungriest people in the world, four in five inhabit that tiny strip of land,” he said. “In many places, climate disasters add another dimension. Every one of the 14 countries most at risk from climate change are suffering conflict. Thirteen of them face humanitarian crisis this year.”

The UN said about 16 million people in Ethiopia required food assistance in the wake of a war followed by drought and the situation worsened by the influx of refugees fleeing the conflict in neighboring Sudan. In Haiti, millions of people need assistance as the country is battered by hurricanes, violence and lawlessness.

“To avoid mounting threats to international peace and security, we must step in and act now to break the deadly links between conflict, climate and food insecurity,” Guterres told the 15-nation Security Council under the presidency of Guyana. He called on “all parties” in a conflict to abide by international humanitarian law.

“Starvation of civilians may constitute a war crime, and humanitarians must have unimpeded access to civilians in need,” he said, adding that the UN council has a critical role in demanding compliance and holding those who breach its resolutions to account.

He called on countries to fund humanitarian operations in full “to prevent disaster and conflict from feeding hunger” and “create the conditions to resolve conflict and preserve peace – within countries and between countries.” This is in reference to countries that have suspended funding of the UN relief organization for Palestinians in Gaza.

He called on the council to “get a grip on the climate crisis to limit the rise in global temperature to 1.5 degrees Celsius. Because climate action is action for food security and action for peace. G20 nations must lead a just global phase out of fossil fuels, in line with the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities, in the light of different national circumstances. And all countries must create ambitious new national climate action plans – or nationally determined contributions – by 2025, that align with the 1.5-degree limit.”

Beth Bechdol, Deputy Director-General of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization said climate and conflict are the most important issues requiring urgent action to address global food insecurity.

“The scientific evidence and the policy direction are clear – climate change is compromising food security, and its impacts are a growing threat to international peace and security. It is having alarming effect on people, the planet and …what I would like to address… agrifood systems – meaning how and when we produce, harvest, process and store our food.”

Bechdol said, according to the 2023 Global Report on Food Crises, the main drivers of food insecurity and hunger around the world are conflict and climate change, which affected 258 million people in 58 countries.

“As much as 70 percent of the most climate-vulnerable countries are also among the most politically and economically fragile,” Bechdol said. “Climate change will undo progress made in alleviating hunger, but as it intensifies it will create further disruptions and continue to be a driver of conflict.“

Simon Stiell, Executive Secretary the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)

“The combination of climate change, hunger, and war is a devastating one. There is no national security without food security. And there will be no food security without enhanced action to stop climate change,” Stiell told the council meeting, pointing out that there are solutions and ways forward.

“This Council should be requesting a regular stream of information on climate security risks. The UNFCCC can help in the development of these updates,” Stiell said, adding that countries that attended the climate summit in Dubai in December 2023 had agreed to begin investing in “designing, piloting, and delivering, climate adaptation plans for food systems from planting new crops to better meteorological information and communication.” He said countries need money for climate adaptation, particularly developing countries that are vulnerable to climate shocks but many of them are already facing scarcity, fragility and conflict.

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