A new study, published on Thursday, 20 May, found that 3.3 million Nigeriens, or 22.2% of the total population, are facing serious food shortages. This is in addition to the 3.8 million people, or 25.5% of Niger’s population, who face moderate food insecurity.

Quoted by Reuters, one of the contributors to the assessment mission pointed out that this new assessment of the situation in Niger, shows that the crisis is "even more serious [than we thought] and requires a greater and urgent response".

And yet the international community, via the United Nations which centralizes the emergency aide provided by 6 UN agencies and 9 NGOs, have so far received only a third of the 190 million requested last December following the first crisis assessment.

Niger is one of the countries the most affected by food insecurity. However, this latest crisis demonstrates yet again the fragility of the global food situation: not only has there been no improvement since the very severe crisis of 2005, then the global food crisis in 2008, but the international community is still struggling to mobilize the necessary funds to provide adapted emergency aide. When will the international community decide to implement a real agricultural and food regulation policy, which stabilizes markets and allows the development of all forms of agriculture worldwide? Only a proactive and preventive policy will reduce the recurrence of world food crises and consequently, the necessity for emergency aid...