Myanmar's conflict-torn Rakhine state could face an imminent acute famine, UN report warns
UNB
Publish: 08 Nov 2024, 01:05 PM
UNITED
NATIONS, Nov 8 (AP/UNB) - Myanmar's Rakhine state, home to the Rohingya
minority and engulfed in conflict between government forces and a powerful
ethnic group, could face an imminent acute famine, the United Nations
development agency warned in a new report.
The U.N. Development
Program said in the report issued Thursday that "a perfect storm is
brewing" which has put western Rakhine "on the precipice of an
unprecedented disaster."
It pointed to a chain of
interlinked developments including restrictions on goods from elsewhere in
Myanmar and neighboring Bangladesh, the absence of income for residents,
hyperinflation, significantly reduced food production, and a lack of essential
services and social safety net.
As a result, UNDP said,
"an already highly vulnerable population may be on the brink of collapse
in the coming months."
Buddhist-majority
Myanmar has long considered the Rohingya Muslim minority to be
"Bengalis" from Bangladesh even though their families have lived in
the country for generations. Nearly all have been denied citizenship since
1982.
In August 2017, attacks
by a Rohingya insurgent group on Myanmar security personnel triggered a brutal
campaign by the military which drove at least 740,000 Rohingya to Bangladesh.
The military is accused of mass rape, killings and burning thousands of homes.
Since Myanmar's military
seized power in 2021 from the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi,
pro-democracy guerillas and ethnic minority armed forces have been attempting
to oust the military from power.
Last November, the
Arakan Army, which is seeking autonomy from Myanmar's central government, began
an offensive against the military in Rakhine and has gained control of more
than half of its townships. The Arakan Army, which is the well-armed wing of the
Rakhine ethnic minority movement, is also a member of the armed ethnic group
alliance trying to topple the military.
The UNDP report said
that based on data the agency collected in 2023 and 2024, "Rakhine's
economy has stopped functioning, with critical sectors such as trade,
agriculture, and construction nearly at a standstill."
With domestic and
international markets no longer accessible because of blockades, UNDP said
people's incomes are collapsing because they can't export goods, and that
agricultural jobs are disappearing for the same reason.
In addition, it said,
imports of cement have stopped, leading to "an exorbitant price
increase" and shutting down the construction industry, a major employer.
The report, titled
"Rakhine: A Famine in the Making," said, "Rakhine could face
acute famine imminently."
"Predictions
indicate that domestic food production will only cover 20% of its needs by
March-April 2025," UNDP said.
"Internal rice
production is plummeting due to a lack of seeds, fertilizers, severe weather
conditions, a steep rise in the number of internally displaced people who can
longer engage in cultivation, and escalating conflict," the U.N. agency said.
"This, along with the near-total cessation of internal and external trade,
will leave over 2 million people at risk of starvation."
UNDP called for
immediate action to allow goods and humanitarian aid into Rakhine, enable
unimpeded access for aid workers and ensure their safety, and urgently provide
financial resources to enable the agricultural sector to recover.
"Without urgent
action, 95% of the population will regress into survival mode, left to fend for
themselves amid a drastic reduction in domestic production, skyrocketing
prices, widespread unemployment, and heightened insecurity," UNDP warned.
"With trade routes
closed and severe restrictions on aid, Rakhine risks becoming a fully isolated
zone of deep human suffering," the U.N. agency said.
End/UNB/AP/SU