Fact of the Day

The UN Food and Agriculture Organization said latest studies showed 102 million people faced acute malnutrition.

That is up almost 30 percent from 80 million in 2015.

The UN World Food Programme said last month more than 20 million people - greater than the population of Romania or Florida - risk dying from starvation within six months in four separate famines.

Lack of funding was also hampering the agency's response in Syria, where food production dropped to an all-time low in 2016, Burgeon said. “A lot is going to food assistance and barely anything is going to help farmers who have decided to stay on their land,” he said.

The soaring cost of seeds, fertilisers and tractor fuel was pushing many farmers to leave, making it more difficult to restart the economy once peace or stability returned, he added.

“What we need to do is to help them stay and crop their land and be there for the future,” Burgeon said. “To survive is not enough.”