Famine Early Warning Systems Network facts for kids
FEWS NET, which stands for the Famine Early Warning Systems Network, is a special system that provides information and analysis about food shortages. It was created in 1985 by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the US Department of State. This system was started after serious famines happened in East and West Africa.
How FEWS NET Started
FEWS NET was created because of the terrible famines in Sudan and Ethiopia between 1984 and 1985, which caused many people to die. From the very beginning, the goal of this early warning system was to predict when food shortages might happen. It also aimed to advise leaders on how to prevent or lessen these problems. In July 2000, the system's name was changed to the Famine Early Warning Systems Network, or FEWS NET. This new name showed how important it was to work with and strengthen local food security groups in different countries.
In 2008, an expert named Molly E. Brown said that FEWS NET had been very successful for over twenty years. She mentioned that many people saw it as the best program for telling governments about upcoming food crises. A study published in 2021 showed that FEWS NET's predictions are accurate about 84% of the time. They are even more accurate (over 93%) when food insecurity is not too severe.
The system temporarily stopped working in January 2025. However, it started operating again in June 2025, though not all of its services were fully restored.
What FEWS NET Aims to Do
FEWS NET aims to give important information to governments, international aid groups, non-profit organizations (NGOs), journalists, and researchers. This information helps them plan for, respond to, and report on humanitarian crises.
With help from a team in Washington, D.C., FEWS NET staff work in more than 20 country offices. They team up with US government agencies, national government groups, and international partners. Together, they collect data and create clear, forward-looking reports about countries most at risk of food shortages.
FEWS NET uses a complete approach, looking at many things like:
- Climate and weather
- How much food is grown
- Food prices and trade
- Nutrition and health
- Other important factors
By understanding how people in local areas make a living, FEWS NET can predict what is most likely to happen. They can also see changes coming six to twelve months in advance. To help decision-makers and aid groups prepare for food emergencies, FEWS NET publishes monthly reports on its website. These reports cover current and expected food insecurity. They also send out quick alerts about new or likely crises and special reports on weather dangers, crops, market prices, and food aid.
How FEWS NET Works
FEWS NET focuses on acute food insecurity. This means sudden or short-term food shortages that happen because of unexpected problems. It does not focus on chronic food insecurity, which is ongoing food shortages due to long-term poverty.
Food insecurity is usually caused by many things, not just one. FEWS NET's predictions are strong because they look at all the different factors that can lead to risk. Besides farming and weather, FEWS NET also pays close attention to:
- Markets and trade
- How people make a living
- Social and political issues, like conflicts
- Humanitarian help efforts
Key parts of FEWS NET's method include:
- Classifying Food Insecurity: FEWS NET uses the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification. This is an international five-level scale that describes how severe food insecurity is. FEWS NET experts helped design this scale.
- Scenario Development: This is a core part of FEWS NET's analysis. It's like creating a detailed "if-then" plan. This method involves making smart guesses about future events, what their effects might be, and how different groups might react. By combining these guesses with current conditions and local ways of life, FEWS NET can estimate future food security outcomes. This also makes it easy to update the plan as new information comes in.
- Remote Monitoring: After the global food price crisis in 2008, the risk of food insecurity grew in unexpected places. In 2010, FEWS NET started a simpler way to get information on these new areas. This approach is called remote monitoring. It focuses on finding and watching unusual things that could lead to food insecurity. In remote monitoring, one FEWS NET coordinator covers several countries, often from a nearby office. They rely on partners to collect and share data. The coordinator then analyzes the information and creates monthly, two-page reports about the current and expected food situation.
FEWS NET Partners
Many US agencies work with USAID and contribute important analysis to FEWS NET reports. These include:
- The US Geological Survey: They provide regular reports on climate and farming. They also give technical advice on plants, water availability, and other environmental and climate issues. Three USGS scientists in Africa also offer specific analysis for those regions.
- National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA): Through its Climate Prediction Center, NOAA provides rainfall estimates and monitors weather patterns like El Nino and La Nina.
- NASA: NASA satellites provide images and raw data that USGS and NOAA use for their analysis.
- The US Department of Agriculture (USDA): Through the Foreign Agricultural Service, USDA works with FEWS NET on crop assessments and other farming-related activities.
Chemonics, an international development company, supports FEWS NET's main office in Washington DC. They also support about 80 staff members who work in different countries. Most of these staff are citizens of the countries where they work.
FEWS NET also works closely with other groups in the food security community. These include international organizations like the World Food Program and the Food and Agriculture Organization, as well as national agriculture and trade ministries and national weather services. In some countries, these partnerships might involve writing joint reports, doing joint field visits, or working together on analysis. Examples of these partners include Comité permanent Inter-Etats de Lutte contre la Sécheresse dans le Sahel in West Africa and the Food Security and Nutrition Analysis Unit in Somalia.
