Russia’s war on Ukraine, the persistence of the COVID-19 pandemic and the consequences of climate change are putting intense pressure on the world’s poorest, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) warned on Monday. ).
According to the Paris-based body, 60 states, territories and places fell last year into the category of “fragile contexts”, meaning they were exposed to economic, environmental, social and political risks that they do not didn’t have the capacity to absorb. And that was before Russia invaded Ukraine and escalated their burden.
The document released on Monday named the highest number of places in such dire straits since the OECD began publishing its States of Fragility report in 2015. The 60 countries represent 24% of the world’s population, 73 % of those living in extreme poverty, 80% of those who died in conflict, and the vast majority of ‘hunger hotspots’ in the world. And they are home to 95% of the record 274 million people the United Nations says are in need of humanitarian assistance.
“We find ourselves in an era defined by multiple crises, shocks and uncertainties,” the OECD said.
Only one in three people in places deemed fragile have received COVID vaccines, compared to three in four people in the 38 relatively wealthy OECD countries.
The organization noted that the 60 fragile states accounted for just 4% of global emissions, but were “feeling the brunt of climate-related natural disasters”.
The OECD said the five most fragile countries last year were Somalia, South Sudan, Afghanistan, Yemen and the Central African Republic. And three countries – Benin, Timor-Leste and Turkmenistan – were recently added to the list of fragile states last year. No country has been removed from the list.