(Recast): 14 mln people in Southern Africa face hunger due to drought: UN agency

The World Food Program (WFP) estimated that 14 million people are facing hunger in Southern Africa due to prolonged dry spells that led to a poor harvest last year, said a UN spokesperson here on Monday.

The WFP said the El Nino global weather event is leading to even worse drought across the region and is already affecting this year's crop, UN Deputy Spokesperson Farhan Haq told a daily briefing.

"The number of people without enough food could rise significantly over coming months as the region moves deeper into the so-called lean season, the period before the April harvest when food and cash stocks become increasingly depleted," said Haq.

According to the WFP, the worst affected countries by last year's poor rains are Malawi, Madagascar and Zimbabwe. Lesotho has declared a drought emergency last month and one third of the population does not have enough food.

Also of concern are the situations in Angola, Mozambique and Swaziland, said Haq.

The warm-water phenomenon, El Nino, has dried up rainfall across southern Africa over the last year, killing crops and disrupting hydropower production. South Africa, previously an exporter of grain, will have to import 5 to 6 million tons of maize due to the severe drought.

This year, high temperatures, low rains despite being in the rainy season, weaker food production and more threats of food insecurity, all ascribed to El Nino, are expected to continue to exert negative impact on the region. Enditem