The famine presently ravaging the population of the Sahel belt in Central Africa is not a new occurrence. In the last 15 years, hundreds of thousands of people have died because of malnutrition and disease, caused by the successive failure of crops. In addition to the lack of adequate rainfalls, many other factors have contributed to the present situation:

• Overgrazing of available land by increasing numbers of livestock.

• Failure of the governments involved to modernize their agriculture by irrigation programs, fertilization, etc.

• Consummation of grains for seeding and livestock by the famine stricken population—preventing rehabilitation.