Very recently, in which of the following countries have lakhs of people either suffered from severe famine/acute malnutrition or died due to starvation caused by war/ethnic conflicts ?
- (a) Angola and Zambia
- (b) Morocco and Tunisia
- (c) Venezuela and Colombia
- (d) Yemen and South Sudan ✓ UPSC's answer
Why the answer is (d)
• In 2017 the UN declared famine in parts of South Sudan, torn by civil war since 2013, and warned that Yemen — blockaded and bombed in the Saudi-led war since 2015 — faced the world's worst humanitarian crisis with millions in acute malnutrition and a cholera epidemic — option (d).
• Nigeria's north-east and Somalia were the other famine-risk countries that year.
• Angola/Zambia (a), Morocco/Tunisia (b) and Venezuela/Colombia (c) had hardship but no war-driven famine of this scale.
• Hence option (d).
Why the other options are wrong
- (a) Angola and Zambia
- Angola and Zambia had no war-driven famine.
- (b) Morocco and Tunisia
- Morocco and Tunisia were not in famine.
- (c) Venezuela and Colombia
- Venezuela faced economic crisis, not war famine.
Asked in the GS Paper I of the UPSC Civil Services Preliminary Examination 2018, held on 3 June 2018. Question and answer key: Union Public Service Commission. Explanation: UPSC Answer Check.