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Sri Lanka

WFP Sri Lanka: Situation Report 15 July 2022

Attachments

In Numbers

6.3 million people are food insecure. This is likely to deteriorate as the crisis unfolds.

6.7 million people are not consuming acceptable diets.

3.4 million people are planned to be targeted by WFP to receive emergency food, nutrition, and school meals

Highlights

• WFP is immediately scaling up operations to reach 3.4 million people in 2022 and urgently requires USD 63 million to carry out its lifesaving assistance.

• The upcoming Maha season is at risk of seeing a 50 percent reduction in paddy planting areas and an unlikely recovery of the fisheries and livestock sectors if farmers do not gain access to seeds, fertilizer, and financial assistance.

Situation Update

• Household food security and nutrition situation is set to deteriorate as the crisis ensues, according to WFP and FAO’s recent Crop and Food Security Assessment Mission (CFSAM).

• Nationally, 6.3 million people were found to be food insecure (28.3 percent). Of these, at least 65,600 people are severely food insecure. These figures could increase drastically without immediate intervention.

• Skyrocketing food costs are making it harder for the population to meet their food needs. About 6.7 million people are not consuming adequate diets and 5.3 million people are reducing the number of meals eaten.

• Incomes in the last three months have plummeted. About two in five households reported that their income has been cut in half.

• To cope with the lack of food, 5 million people are using crisis or emergency livelihood coping strategies that are likely to impact their mediumto long-term capacity for income-generating activities and food security.

• If farmers do not gain access to seeds, other inputs and financial assistance, the upcoming Maha season could see a reduction in paddy planting areas by 50 percent, an unlikely recovery of the fisheries and livestock sectors, and a further increase in food prices and food import reliance.

• Food inflation reached a staggering 80 percent in June 2022. Coupled with livelihood disruptions, this further limits households’ purchasing power.