UN agency: Hunger on rise in Yemen

About 5 million people in Yemen, more than a fifth of the restive country's population, are at risk of hunger, the World Food Program said Wednesday. "Hunger is on the increase in Yemen, and rising food prices combined with conflict are taking their toll on many families," said Lubna Alaman, the Yemen representative for the United Nations agency. The WFP worked with the Yemen Central Statistical Office and UNICEF, the UN children's agency, on a survey in November and December. The survey found that 22 percent of the population reported trouble obtaining food because of high prices or short supplies, while a similar percentage were at risk of food insecurity. The percentage of people facing food insecurity has doubled since 2009. The WFP has increased the size of its program in Yemen and now has the capacity to feed about 3.4 million people in 2012. The survey involved interviews with 8,000 households. The agencies also tracked the nutrition available for 10,000 mothers and 11,000 children.