Madagascar people left starving after drought: WFP

Communities in Madagascar are on the verge of starvation.

That’s according to the World Food Programme, which says resources are scarce in the country after the worst drought in four decades.

Acute malnutrition has almost doubled in just the last four months.

These two children are orphaned and running out of food.

Their carer is also a mother of three:

"I rely on God. Today we have absolutely nothing to eat except cactus leaves that we are trying to clean up. We have nothing left. Their mother is dead and my husband is dead. What do you want me to say? Our life is all about looking for cactus leaves again and again to survive."

David Beasley is WFP’s executive director.

"It's seven times worse than it was just a year ago. Seven times more children are in trouble. Why? Because of drought. We're facing the worst drought in over 40 years, and this is an area where people depend on their own agriculture; home-grown school meals, smallholder farmers, this is how they live down here but with drought back to back to back, people can't survive and so the government partnering with WFP and others we're doing the best we can, but it's a terrible situation."

The WFP said more than a quarter of people are suffering in one area.

And $78.6 million is needed to fight the crisis.