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Publication | 2023

Namibia: Acute Food Insecurity Situation September - December 2022 and Projections for January - March 2023 and April - August 2023

Global Food and Nutrition Security

Between September and December 2022, an estimated 376,000 people (or 14% of the population), according to the most recent IPC Acute Food Insecurity Analysis conducted in September 2022, were experiencing Crisis or worse (IPC Phase 3 or above), with about 6,000 of those people in Emergency (IPC Phase 4). Kavango East, Kavango West, Kunene, Omaheke, and Oshikoto are the five regions that make up the overall Crisis (IPC Phase 3) classification. This period encompasses the first half of Namibia’s leanseason when prices start to rise, and most households would have usedup their production stocks. Compared to last year, however, this is asignificant improvement in the country’s food security situation.

The food security situation is projected to worsen between January and March 2023, corresponding to the last and second half of Namibia’s lean season, with 390,000 people forecasted to experience high levels of acute food insecurity (IPC Phase 3 or above). The number of regions classified in Crisis (IPC Phase 3) is expected to increase to six (Kavango East, Kavango West, Kunene, Omaheke, Oshikoto and Otjozondjupa). It is expected that households exit the festive period with few opportunities for casual work and face rising and above-average food prices made worse by inflation, rising fuel prices, and the effects of the Ukraine/Russia conflict. As a result, the food security situation will likely deteriorate even further.

Between April and August 2023, it is projected that the food security situation will improve as households start consuming food from their production, which marks the beginning of the 2023–2024 consumption period, as a result of average to above normal rainfall expected for the 2022–2023 rainfall season. It is estimated that 239,000 people (or 9% of the population) will experience high levels of acute food insecurity (IPC Phase 3 or above) between April and August 2023. The impact of the conflict in Ukraine/Russia is predicted to lessen during Namibia’s post-harvest season, and above-average production is anticipated in South Africa.