US famine monitor offline amid Trump funding freeze

The Famine Early Warning System Network is used to predict and prevent famines around the world.

British Broadcasting CorporationWatch LiveHomeNewsSportBusinessInnovationCultureArtsTravelEarthVideoLiveHomeNewsIsrael-Gaza WarWar in UkraineUS & CanadaUKUK PoliticsEnglandN. IrelandN. Ireland PoliticsScotlandScotland PoliticsWalesWales PoliticsAfricaAsiaChinaIndiaAustraliaEuropeLatin AmericaMiddle EastIn PicturesBBC InDepthBBC VerifySportBusinessExecutive LoungeTechnology of BusinessFuture of BusinessInnovationTechnologyScience & HealthArtificial IntelligenceAI v the MindCultureFilm & TVMusicArt & DesignStyleBooksEntertainment NewsArtsArts in MotionTravelDestinationsAfricaAntarcticaAsiaAustralia and PacificCaribbean & BermudaCentral AmericaEuropeMiddle EastNorth AmericaSouth AmericaWorld’s TableCulture & ExperiencesAdventuresThe SpeciaListEarthNatural WondersWeather & ScienceClimate SolutionsSustainable BusinessGreen LivingVideoLiveLive NewsLive SportHomeNewsSportBusinessInnovationCultureArtsTravelEarthVideoLiveAudioWeatherNewslettersUS system predicting global famine offline amid Trump freeze14 hours agoTom BatemanUS State Department correspondentReutersA mother sits with her malnourished daughter during a period of widespread food insecurity in northern Ethiopia last yearThe United States' system for monitoring famine globally has been taken offline amid President Donald Trump's order for a 90-day freeze on nearly all US foreign assistance.

The Famine Early Warning System Network (Fewsnet) was established after the 1984 famine in Ethiopia, as part of a worldwide effort to prevent a repeat of its devastating impact.

It was designed by US government agencies, including its international development body USAID and the space agency Nasa.

It is regarded as a gold standard in combining weather data and political analysis to predict drought and food insecurity globally.

Alongside a model run by the UN, the system allows aid officials to target emergency food supply ahead of time, and is credited with mitigating the effects of a devastating drought in the Horn of Africa in 2016.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4g9p7n8vl9o

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