The caribbean
Extreme weather, rising prices and lingering impacts of COVID-19 are driving hunger in the Caribbean. Families urgently need food.
Disaster Upon Disaster
The Caribbean is one of the world’s most disaster-prone regions. Hurricane Beryl is one of the latest storms to hit when it tore through Barbados, Grenada, St. Vincent and the Grenadines and Tobago in July 2024. The disaster worsened an already severe hunger crisis in the region. 3 million people – nearly half of the population in the Caribbean – are moderately or severely food insecure.
Of the region’s population
is food insecure
Disasters have hit in the
last 60 years
People received WFP
assistance in 2024
How Do Natural Disasters Drive Hunger?
Climate extremes like Hurricane Beryl are one of the main drivers of acute hunger in the Caribbean. Whether from life-threatening winds or heavy flooding, communities are often left with one or more of these realities:
1. Food Shortages
Disasters disrupt food supply chains by destroying agricultural land, roads and infrastructure. This can lead to local food shortages as communities have no way to grow or access food.
5. Land Degradation
Frequent and intense climate-related disasters can wipe out vast stretches of farmland and destroy entire harvests. Over time, recurring disasters like floods or droughts degrade soil, which makes farmland barren.
3. Forced Migration
In the aftermath of a disaster, families may migrate in search of food, safe housing or healthcare. This forced displacement also cuts people off from steady sources of food and puts them at higher risk of experiencing acute hunger.
2. Unsafe Drinking Water
Drinking water can become contaminated and unsafe in the aftermath of a disaster. This can lead to disease and/or worsen malnutrition.
4. Inflation
When disasters wipe out crops and livestock, food prices go up. The cost of basic foods soon rises beyond what most people can afford.
WFP IS HELPING FAMILIES IN THE CARIBBEAN
The U.N. World Food Programme supports 22 countries and territories across the Caribbean. With partners, we work to prepare communities for emergencies and strengthen their resilience to increasingly frequent and extreme weather events.
In the wake of natural disasters, WFP can deliver emergency food assistance within 72 hours to people who have lost everything. Often, we provide ready-to-eat high-energy biscuits to the hardest-hit areas.
WFP oversees the delivery of supplies and staff for the entire aid community. Our U.N. Humanitarian Air Service can transport staff, medical equipment, food and water to people in hard-to-reach locations.
To mitigate the impact of disasters like hurricanes, WFP pre-positions stocks of emergency food. This enables us to respond swiftly when disaster strikes and immediately put hot meals into the hands of survivors.
