More than 41 million people are in a bad situation during the lean season this year; the food situation is getting worse and worse in Africa; specifically in West and Central Africa. The World Bank states in its publication of 12 April 2023 that 29 million people depend on emergency food aid. The financial institution blames the high rate of malnutrition in the region on fragility and conflict, high levels of poverty linked to economic shocks, accelerating climate change, low agricultural and food productivity, and environmental degradation.

For the World Bank, the countries in West and Central Africa concerned include: Burkina Faso, Mali, Sierra Leone, Senegal, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Gambia, Liberia, Gabon, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Togo, Chad, Cape Verde, Ghana, Côte d'Ivoire, Central Africa, Benin.

 The latest warning on food insecurity is also echoed by the UN food agency, the World Food Programme, which estimates that 48 million people in West and Central Africa are affected by food shortages as efforts to contain inflation contribute to food shortages.

In response, the World Bank has adopted a regional approach to building resilience in the food system and mobilising emergency response funds from the International Development Association.