More than 30 million people around the world will be pushed back into poverty even if the Iran war conflict were to end tomorrow, the United Nations has warned, APA reports citing Reuters.
“Worldwide, 0.5 percent to 0.8 percent of GDP (is) being lost. What does it mean for the more vulnerable countries in the world? It means 32 million people being pushed back into poverty,” Alexander De Croo, head of the UN Development Program, told Reuters.
“Remittances for the Asia-Pacific region, it’s 100 billion a year, which used to go directly from family to family, that is very often disappearing these days,” he said. “Even if the war would stop tomorrow, those effects, you already have them, and they will be pushing back more than 30 million people into poverty.”
De Croo, a former Belgian prime minister, said this was due to the spike in energy prices and growing food insecurity. On top of oil supplies, vast amounts of fertilizer also normally pass through the Strait of Hormuz, which has effectively been shut by Iran.
He warned that food shortages will peak in a few months.
“The planting season is now,” he said. “If you do it now and you don’t have access to fertilisers, that productivity will be much lower in September, October, and November … (and) food insecurity will be at its peak level in a few months.”
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