Here are the world's 10 most forgotten crises

Aid workers load food onto a truck as flooding spreads in the aftermath of Cyclone Kenneth in Pemba, Mozambique, April 29, 2019. REUTERS/Mike Hutchings

Aid workers load food onto a truck as flooding spreads in the aftermath of Cyclone Kenneth in Pemba, Mozambique, April 29, 2019. REUTERS/Mike Hutchings

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Climate change compounds risks in silent crises that leave 35 million fighting to survive

LONDON - From Gaza to Ukraine, more than 180 million people are caught up in humanitarian emergencies, but while a handful make headlines, many crises fly under the radar.

Here are the 10 that attracted the least media attention last year, according to research by aid agency CARE.

These overlooked crises - many exacerbated by climate change and extreme weather - have affected about 35 million people, nearly four times the population of Austria.

Many are in southern Africa where the worst drought in 40 years has been fuelled by El Niño, a climate phenomenon that can exacerbate drought and storms.

ANGOLA - If you have not heard there is a drought in Angola, you are not alone. The crisis, which has impacted more than 2 million people, tops the list of most forgotten emergencies after garnering fewer than 2,000 media articles.

Rich in natural resources, including oil, the southern African country is one of the continent's strongest economies, but the drought has led to severe crop losses.

Some 85% of the population work in agriculture, but many have hardly any seeds and seedlings for the next planting season.

CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC - Years of civil war fuelled by armed groups and ethnic, religious and political tensions have left 2.8 million people dependent on aid.

A fifth of the population has been uprooted internally or fled to neighbouring countries like Chad, Cameroon and the Democratic Republic of Congo. More than 2.5 million people do not have enough to eat.   

There are also very high rates of violence against girls and women.

MADAGASCAR - The island, famous for vanilla production, suffers prolonged droughts and violent hurricanes and is highly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change.

Four-in-five people live in abject poverty, about half lack enough to eat and one-in-four children is chronically malnourished.

The Global Hunger Index classified the situation in 2024 as "alarming", ranking Madagascar among the six most worrying countries.

Sudanese people, who fled the conflict in Murnei in Sudan's Darfur region, cross the border between Sudan and Chad in Adre, Chad August 4, 2023. REUTERS/Zohra Bensemra
Go DeeperFour humanitarian crises that demand more attention in 2025
A farmer sprays a pesticide on her maize field in Chikwawa District, Malawi March 19, 2018. REUTERS/Eldson Chagara
Go DeeperIn parched Malawi rains promise deliverance but also danger
Residents fetch drinking water from a borehole in Marondera, Zimbabwe, November 7, 2024. REUTERS/Philimon Bulawayo
Go DeeperWhich southern African countries are battling drought disasters

BURKINA FASO - Escalating violence linked to an Islamist insurgency, political instability and fighting over control of mineral resources has led to mass displacement and hunger.

The insecurity, changing climatic conditions, and prolonged droughts have cut harvests.

More than 2 million people - almost one in 10 - are uprooted, mostly women and children, and 2.7 million are going hungry.

Some 6.3 million depend on aid, according to U.N. estimates - a nearly 7-fold increase in five years. But frequent attacks on aid convoys hinder deliveries.

BURUNDI - Nearly 300,000 people were affected by severe flooding in Burundi last year, deepening poverty in the small densely populated country, which has seen repeated conflicts over resources such as land and water.

More than half of under-fives are chronically malnourished - one of the highest rates in the world, and 2.2 million people do not know where their next meal is coming from, including 229,000 who are suffering from extreme hunger.

MOZAMBIQUE - The southern African country has been pounded by more than a dozen tropical cyclones since 2007 and is one of the world's most disaster-prone nations, according to the World Food Programme.

It is also grappling with a conflict-related displacement crisis in the northern province of Cabo Delgado with more than 1.7 million people uprooted, according to the United Nations.

Repeated cyclones paired with ongoing drought in some areas have led to rising levels of hunger, leaving 2.8 million without enough to eat last year.

A drone view of destroyed houses and buildings following cyclone Chido in Pemba, Mozambique, December 18, 2024. REUTERS/Shafiek Tassiem

A drone view of destroyed houses and buildings following cyclone Chido in Pemba, Mozambique, December 18, 2024. REUTERS/Shafiek Tassiem

A drone view of destroyed houses and buildings following cyclone Chido in Pemba, Mozambique, December 18, 2024. REUTERS/Shafiek Tassiem

CAMEROON - Years of conflict in the north and southwest between Anglophone separatists and the government has led to major internal displacement in the majority Francophone country.

Extreme weather also triggered deadly floods that uprooted about 1 million people across West and Central Africa last year, affecting about 350,000 people in Cameroon.

Some 3.4 million people needed humanitarian aid in 2024. One million are internally displaced, at least 2.5 million do not have enough to eat, more than 600,000 lack shelter and 60% of the population lacks clean water.

MALAWI - The southern African country is experiencing one of the worst humanitarian crises in its history because of drought. It declared a state of disaster in 2024 after severe El Niño conditions destroyed 44% of land used to grow corn.

More than 6 million people urgently need humanitarian aid, and basic food has become unaffordable for most due to soaring inflation.

Climate change is also fuelling a vicious cycle of drought and deluge that leaves farmers with no time to recover.

ZAMBIA - Drought has affected almost half the population - 9.8 million people - and a state of disaster was declared early last year.

The prolonged dry period has not only wiped out crops, but also hit hydroelectric power plants, leading to nationwide outages and affecting livelihoods.

Many young children eat just one basic meal a day.

As elsewhere, the climate crisis is leading to longer dry seasons. If it does rain, the soil is so parched that the water cannot drain away, and instead floods land, destroying crops.

NIGER - A multi-faceted crisis driven by conflict, political instability, hunger and climate change has left 4.5 million people in the Sahel country relying on aid.

More than 3.4 million face hunger, and more than half the population lives below the national poverty line.

Scientists say climate change contributed to the severe regional flooding last year that affected a million people in Niger.

A combination of floods and droughts has ruined agriculture in the country where 80% of the population relies on farming. Violence in border regions has also displaced over 507,000 people.

(Reporting by Emma Batha, additional reporting by Kim Harrisberg; Editing by Jon Hemming.)


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Tags

  • Extreme weather
  • Unemployment
  • Poverty
  • Agriculture and farming
  • Cost of living
  • Climate and health
  • Climate inequality
  • Migration




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