ReliefWeb

SITUATION

The COVID-19 pandemic is having long-lasting effects on food security and livelihoods in the Latin American and Caribbean region, which has seen the highest relative increase of people in severe food insecurity, from around 3.5 million in January 2020 to 12.3 million by August 2021, 4 times greater than before the pandemic. Many refugees and migrants from Venezuela (especially those in an irregular situation) are particularly dependent on the informal economy and face barriers accessing income-generating activities or social protection networks, resulting in an increasing inability to satisfy their essential needs.

According to needs assessments carried out by RMRP partners in 2021, one out of four refugees and migrants either consumed only one meal a day or spent the previous day without eating. At least one in three refugees and migrants also reported having to skip meals or restrict consumption by adults so children could eat.