Sahel faces threat of famine

The UN has warned that nearly 12 million people in the Sahel region of Africa face the spectre of famine within months unless the international community acts now. Drought, poor harvests and rising food prices have left five countries in West-Central Africa on the brink of a humanitarian crisis prompting all five governments to declare states of emergency. The worst affected nation is Niger where the government believes that more than half of the villages are now running out of basic food. William Canny is the Director of Emergency Operations for Catholic Relief Services and has just returned from a tour of villages in Niger where he saw at first hand the extent of the hunger crisis.

He told Susy Hodges there is "an absolute risk ... of high levels of famine" in Niger without a significant intervention from the government and the international community. He says one person he talked to in the affected area gave him a stark warning: "if the government waits too long ...we will die."

Listen to the fully interview by Susy Hodges with William Canny of Catholic Relief Services: