Two United Nations food bodies cautioned yesterday that millions of additional people worldwide could be threatened by hunger, as funding gaps continue to aggravate already critical situations.

A joint publication by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Food Programme (WFP) noted that conflict and unrest are fueling severe food shortages in most of the nations identified as being at risk.

The Rome-based agencies listed Haiti, Mali, Palestine, South Sudan, Sudan, and Yemen as the worst, “where populations face an imminent risk of catastrophic hunger.”

Also classified as a “very high concern” were Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Myanmar, Nigeria, Somalia, and Syria, with Burkina Faso, Chad, Kenya, and the situation of the Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh also making the list.

“We are on the brink of a completely preventable hunger catastrophe that threatens widespread starvation in multiple countries,” said WFP Executive Director Cindy McCain, warning that a failure to act “will only drive further instability, migration and conflict.”

Funding for humanitarian relief was falling “dangerously short,” the report stated, outlining that only $10.5 billion had been received out of the required $29 billion to assist those at risk.

WFP disclosed that due to funding cuts, it had reduced assistance for refugees and displaced people, while suspending school feeding programmes in some countries.

FAO cautioned that efforts to protect agricultural livelihoods were threatened, “which are essential for stabilising food production and preventing recurring crises.”

Funding was needed for seeds and livestock health services, it said, “before planting seasons begin or new shocks occur.”