Millions in Nepal facing hunger as climate changes

Millions of people in Nepal face severe food shortages because global climate change has disrupted weather patterns and slashed crop yields in the Himalayan nation, an international aid agency warned Friday.

Changing weather patterns have dramatically affected crop production in Nepal, leaving farmers unable to properly feed themselves and pushing them into debt, Oxfam International said in a report released in Katmandu.

The British aid agency described the situation as "deeply worrying."

"Communities told us crop production is roughly half that of previous years ... Last year many could only grow enough (food) for one month's consumption," said Oxfam's Wayne Gum, adding that less precipitation has been forecast this winter, which will make the situation worse.

More extreme temperatures, drier winters and delays in summer monsoons have all compounded the situation, the report said.

More than 3.4 million people in Nepal are estimated to require food assistance, and food stocks in farming communities will last only a few months, it warned.

Oxfam said Nepal will likely suffer more frequent droughts because of climate change. River levels will decline due to the reduced rainfall and glacial retreat, making it harder to irrigate crops and provide water for livestock.

"The predicted impacts of climate change will heighten existing vulnerabilities, inequalities and exposure to hazards," the report said.

Oxfam recommended in its report that the government and international organizations intervene to ease food shortages in hill and mountain districts and provide assistance during the upcoming planting season.

The government should encourage farmers to try new crop varieties and improve water management, and it should integrate climate change strategies into government planning.

Ang Dawa, a member of a parliamentary committee tackling climate change, said its effects were already prevalent in Nepal, especially in the mountainous north.

She said her village in the foothills of Mount Everest, the world's highest mountain, was covered in several feet (dozens of centimeters) of snow during the winter when she was a child, but now there is hardly any snow.