Oxfam: The hunger crisis linked to the coronavirus could kill more than the disease itself

A new report published by Oxfam, estimated that 12,000 people per day could die from hunger as a result of the coronavirus. For Interim Executive Director Chema Vera, the pandemic was the final straw for millions who were already struggling due to conflict, inequality, broken food systems, and the climate crisis. The report also highlights the inequalities our societies suffer from: While the pandemic has driven marginalized sectors to the edge, huge companies continue to make profit. 

Aside from food insecurity, Oxfam also talks about the inequalities in the food distribution system. It also asserts that a country’s level and quality of governance and leadership will spell the difference between those who survive this crisis, and those who die from extreme poverty. 

Editor’s Note: It is difficult for us, the privileged to accept that in this time of pandemic, millions of people are forced to hunger. But it is a reality. In many parts of the Philippines, barter groups have been created to help families struggling to put food on the table due to their lack of livelihood during this prolonged community quarantine. 

And though barter communities have definitely helped in the survival of some families, there are those who have no access to the internet, more so, electricity and water. These are the people we must worry about, for they are the ones who were already struggling long before the pandemic. They are the ones who stand to lose the most for whatever they lose is all they have. 

This was the first reason why experts were urging governments to reopen – to protect the marginalized [not to mention the hundreds of evidences pointing to the reality that lockdowns do not work, read END THE LOCKDOWNS! Stop It Outside By Ending the Lockdowns Inside Us]. 

This article highlights the systemic issues we are battling against. The pandemic offers to us an opportunity to change, but only if we open our eyes and we advocate for a truly just society.