Topic: 2024-Famine in Conflict Zones
Country: South Africa
Delegate Name: Abby Huffman
Food and Agriculture Organization
Famine in Conflict Zones
South Africa
Abby Huffman
Forest Hills Eastern
In a world plagued with conflict, famine runs rampant. While this committee may be incapable of rectifying decades-long geopolitical struggles, it is paramount that it addresses the widespread food insecurity in combat filled regions. According to the World Food Programme, 65% of the world’s hungriest people live in conflict-affected areas. Although South Africa itself is not experiencing outstanding food insecurity, the broader African continent is heavily impacted. According to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), approximately half of Africa is in phase 2 or higher, indicating widespread food insecurity. Currently, areas of South Sudan and the Gaza Strip face the strongest levels of famine, both determined to be in Phase 5 by the IPC. South Africa has been steadfast in its support of South Sudan and the Palestinian Authority, and resolving famine there is of the utmost priority.
As mentioned before, South Africa has contributed consequentially to ending famine in Gaza. In June of 2024, the South African government pledged more than $2.7 million in humanitarian aid to Gaza. This money was channeled through the UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East), a UN Program established as a subsidiary organ of the United Nations General Assembly in 1950. Staff of the UNRWA have played a significant role in fighting the humanitarian crisis in Palestine, providing food aid to more than 1.9 million Gazans since the war erupted in October 2023. Specialized, regional programs such as the UNRWA are extremely helpful in combating famine in conflict zones, and South Africa suggests the development of these regional programs, particularly in conflict zones in Phases 4 or 5 of acute food insecurity. Another cause of famine in conflict zones is the suppression of aid by warring powers. South Africa has taken legal action to fight against states who have prevented aid from being distributed in conflict zones. In December 2023, South Africa sued Israel at the ICJ, and has since asked the ICJ to order additional emergency measures against Israel. In their application, South Africa warned that Palestinians in Gaza were facing starvation. FAO must establish stricter guidelines for food distribution and aid in conflict zones and propose more severe penalties for states that fail to comply. These guidelines should coincide with already established international agreements, but also go further to prevent the humanitarian atrocities the world is seeing being committed today.
South Africa supports a resolution that gives both immediate aid to regions where famine is already present and focuses on preventing famine from occuring in the future. With funding from NGOs such as Action Against Hunger, The Hunger project, and countless others, FAO can work to enhance access to clean water, plant crops, implement more effective sanitation methods, distribute food, and other tactics to fight famine. With ongoing and extreme hunger, these conflicts will never be resolved. The Food and Agriculture Organization must do all in its power to end famine and these regions, and prevent it from ever happening again.
