Attachments
CONTEXT
- Climatic shocks, diseases, and socioeconomic conditions continue to drive high levels of acute food insecurity in Lesotho. In particular, El Niño- induced conditions—including erratic rainfall patterns and prolonged dry spells—during the 2023/2024 rainy season resulted in the lowest crop yields since the 2018/2019 agricultural season, increasing reliance on markets and prompting households to deplete their food stocks atypically early, the Government of Lesotho reports. Drought conditions had also reduced water levels in reservoirs and rivers and resulted in widespread livestock losses as of October, according to the UN. An estimated 80 percent of Lesotho’s population depends on the agricultural sector for food and income, increasing households’ vulnerability to climatic shocks, the UN World Food Program (WFP) reports.
- Below-average incomes and high prices due to low crop production continue to limit food access and restrict household purchasing power, particularly in rural areas of Lesotho, the Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET) reports. As a result, Crisis—IPC 3—levels of acute food insecurity are likely to persist between October 2024 and March 2025, particularly in the south, southwest, and some eastern parts of the country, with Mafeteng, Maseru, Mohale’s Hoek, and Quthing districts projected to be the worst-affected.1 Between 250,000 and 500,000 people are likely to need food assistance by March 2025, FEWS NET reports. Urgent humanitarian assistance is required to prevent acute malnutrition, reduce food gaps, and restore livelihoods.