Daniel Maxwell addresses FEWS NET closure
In January, the Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET) closed after nearly 40 years of providing data used to forecast famines and other humanitarian disasters.
FEWS NET was funded by USAID and shut down after cuts by the Trump administration.
An article in The New Humanitarian addresses the FEWS NET closure and the disruption and dismantling of other humanitarian data collection programs.
The article quotes Daniel Maxwell, who explains the critical role FEWS NET played in allocating food aid and responding to hunger crises.
Maxwell is the Henry J. Leir Professor in Food Security at the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy and Research Director at the Feinstein International Center at Tufts University.
Maxwell points out that the lack of reliable data will increase the risk of aid decisions becoming politicized rather than driven by evidenced-based need.
“Without the eyes and ears of the system, it’s hard to say on what basis” emergency food assistance will now be allocated, said Maxwell.
