YOKOHAMA – Cindy McCain, the executive director of the U.N. World Food Programme, has called for the world to pay attention to African countries suffering from famine, refugee and other humanitarian crises.

“The African continent as a whole, I think, is sometimes forgotten,” McCain said in an interview on Wednesday in Yokohama, where the Ninth Tokyo International Conference on African Development, or TICAD 9, is being held until Friday.

“We need to pay close attention to what’s going on there,” she continued.

Meanwhile, McCain expressed gratitude for the Japanese government’s long-standing financial contributions and the cooperation of Japanese companies.

“We want to hopefully bring in ... more Japanese public-private partnerships,” she stated, showing eagerness to expand support for African people.

McCain lamented the situation in Sudan, which is experiencing what she describes as “the largest humanitarian crisis on the planet.”

In Sudan, a civil war has been going on since April 2023 between regular troops and the Rapid Support Forces, a paramilitary group. About 24.6 million people, or half the population, are suffering acute food shortages, according to the WFP.

She also highlighted the hunger suffered by people in central Congo and the Sahel region in the southern part of the Sahara Desert.

On the situation in the Gaza Strip, where hunger is spreading, she stressed, “We need a ceasefire badly” not only for local citizens but also for humanitarian aid workers.

She said that the number of trucks entering Gaza is up to 100 per day, adding that it is a “little better” than before but still insufficient.

The financial situation of the United Nations is becoming increasingly difficult following U.S. aid cuts.

McCain said the lack of funding has forced the WFP to reduce rations, emphasizing that it is very “heart-wrenching” as it now looks as if its staff were taking food from hungry people to give to those starving.

The WFP is working to enhance its efficiency, including through joint transportation of goods with other organizations, she said.