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Rabat – A report released by the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) on Thursday warns of rising food security issues in Africa and the Middle East, notably mentioning Morocco as one of the countries where agricultural production has fallen.
Decreases in production from Morocco, India, Australia, and Ukraine, are likely to outweigh increases from Russia, Canada, and Iran, the report says.
Morocco’s produce output, such as wheat, fell over the past few years, the report notes, noting that the effects of climate change, such as significantly decreased rainfall,are a main cause.
This year in particular was tough on the nation’s farmers, as Morocco experienced its worst drought in around three decades.
The concerns were exacerbated by the war between Ukraine and Russia, which caused wheat prices –along with other essential goods– to rise substantially.
Morocco’s government raised its budget dedicated to subsidies in response to the crisis, in an attempt to protect its citizens’ purchasing power.
With the rising reliance on imports to compensate for falling domestic production, international price hikes pose a question for the country’s foreseeable future food security.
The report also affirms previous findings in noting a decrease in the output of other products such as oil and milk.
Less than 1% of Morocco’s oil seed production goes towards pressing for oil production, and dairy products have seen small price increases recently.
The issue of food security in developing nations has resurfaced to the forefront of global issues as global conflicts and supply chain issues have exacerbated growing hunger and malnutrition outside of the developed world.
Read also: Morocco’s Food Security Under Pressure Amid Ukraine War
India notably recently paused its grain exports, making an exception for North Africa to help with the region’s food security.
