Landlocked Lesotho faces food crisis amid Covid border closures

Food price increases and economic impact of lockdowns have left a quarter of the kingdom's population reliant on food aid, UN warns

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Almost a quarter of Lesotho's population will require food aid between January and March as a result of Covid-19 restrictions, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has warned.

More than 580,000 people out of a population of 2.2 million are estimated to be food insecure, despite predictions of normal to above average rains this year and the potential for above average cereal production.