Food insecurity in Colombia’s countryside rises to 34.2% – Colombia News

More than one third of people living in Colombia’s countryside suffer moderate or severe food security, according to a study carried out by statistics agency DANE and the World Food Program.

The study revealed that 28.4% of Colombia’s rural population suffered moderate food security and another 5.8% suffered severe food security, meaning hat they typically run out of food.

In urban areas, food insecurity dropped from 26.1% in 2023 to 25.5% last year, according to the same study.

The situation was particularly dire in Colombia’s most northern province, La Guajira, where more than two thirds of the people suffered moderate or severe food insecurity last year, according to DANE.

Food insecurity

The revealed statistics are a major setback for President Gustavo Petro, whose leftist government made the reduction of poverty one of its priorities when taking office in August of 2022.

In an attempt to provide relief to La Guajira, the president declared an emergency in June of 2023, but to no avail as corruption marred the government’s emergency response in the province.

Other provinces with a high prevalence of food insecurity, particularly those in the Caribbean region, have historically suffered underdevelopment and corruption by regional elites that exercise extraordinary control over regional governance.