The number of people who are food-insecure in Syria has reached almost 12.5 million over the last year, representing 60 percent of that country's population, UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Mark Lowcock said on Thursday
UNITED NATIONS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 25th February, 2021) The number of people who are food-insecure in Syria has reached almost 12.5 million over the last year, representing 60 percent of that country's population, UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Mark Lowcock said on Thursday.
"Around 60 percent of the Syrian population, that's nearly 12.5 million people, do not now have regular access to enough safe and nutritious food. An additional 4.5 million people have fallen into this category over the last year," Lowcock told the UN Security Council.
Lawcock attributed the surge to multiple shocks that Syria's already fragile economy has experienced over the last 18 months. Among them are the depreciation of the Syrian Pound, which has inflated food prices by more than 200 percent, he said.
The increase in the cost of food has substantially dwindled the Syrians' purchasing power by some 20 percent, Lowcock said.
"Millions of Syrians are resorting to desperate measures to survive," he said.
In addition, more than half a million children under the age of five are diagnosed with stunting due to chronic malnutrition, Lowcock added.
