It is remarkable that an article about food shortage made no comment about population and population growth. Consequently the article gives the impression that if adequate food were to be provided for the next year or so then things might sort themselves out. The following population data indicates the almost hopelessness of the situation in the Sahel (and in some other areas as well).
Over the world as a whole there are 19.2 births per 1000 persons. In the list of births/1000 Niger has the highest number with 47.7. Third in the world ranking is Mali/Azowad with 45.0, Chad is 6th at 43.4 and Burkino Faso 8th on 42.4.All of those are Sahelian.
For comparison US number is 13.7, Australia 13.5 and, most encouragingly, Indonesia has 17.4.
It is a sad but inevitable fact that unless and until population growth rates are reduced drastically famine will become a permanent feature of some areas.
If I had any optimistic suggestions to make I would state them. But I have none and of course if I did have a good idea a few thousand other people much smarter than me would have thought of them years ago. In the long run the only hope is education of girls and women, but in places where the median age is less than 20 education cannot possibly reach the general public. The rise of Islamism with the concommitant anti female education mania makes things even worse.

Whilst hundreds of millions of women in the third world go without family planning, often producing children that they simply cannot take care of, there will be hungry and starving children.

Why this has not sunk in yet with some people, just blows me away.

Whilst hundreds of millions of women in the third world don't have enough education, to know they have a right to say no to unwanted sex or marriage, there will be thousands of millions of new babies created, and born to die young, through the diseases of want and malnutrition.
Some "population" control is established through the many child birth related deaths, particularly in the case of child brides, clearly far too young to be bearing babies! Which inevitably lodge in a pelvis not yet large enough for the passage of persons, who might be almost as large as the considerably undernourished and stunted female parent? Or simply bleed to death, through the very many untreated internal rips and tears, created by simply being too small or immature, to be making babies?
Other than that, a baby suckling on a bone dry breast will invariably die without food aid! It all too easy to sit in a warm and comfortable armchair and with a full belly, pontificate on population control!
Clearly the rise and rise of fundamentalism, and the dictatorial men who have created the same, this problem will simply grow and grow.
So, instead of dominating the world through strength of numbers, these people will simply migrate when and where they can, and pay people smugglers for their passages, by further subjugating and using/exploiting/preying on their women folk and female children?
And indeed, then proceed to inflict their extreme attitudes and extremely problematic dictates on their host nation? Should we just let them stave or drown at sea Yabby? Could you really advocate for or simply stand idly by and watch that? Talk about blaming the victims!?
Rhrosty

*Whilst hundreds of millions of women in the third world don't have enough education, to know they have a right to say no to unwanted sex or marriage, there will be thousands of millions of new babies created*

You still don't get it, Rhrosty. People will have sex for a good
portion of their adult lives. Women don't just have sex when they
want a baby. Your average Australian couple shags away around 3
times a week and if they did not have family planning available,
there would be babies popping out everywhere.

Give third world women the same options as Australian women have
and they would have far less children. This is not about saying
no. This is about what happens when you have sex, married or not.

Yabby,
Thanks for alerting me to the Thai government involvement in family planning. One site that was interesting was.

http://opinion.inquirer.net/9489/family-planning-in-thailand-ph

The comparisan of Thailand and the Phillipines is astounding. Both had about the same population and economy and now the difference is amazing. Of course other factors, such as religion, play a part but still the benefits of family planning stand out.

I will use the Thai example, as well as Iran, in future.

We certainly have some dills at the UN, I don't know why we bother.

Yabby: "People will shag 2 or 3 times a week and without family planning, babies will be popping out all over the place"?
What, like a bubble gum blowing contest?
The sex drive is primordial and stronger than the survival mechanism!
You need to go back to school Yabby, if only to understand basic biology.
Women become fertile for just a few hours once a month.
Educated women, as a demographic, understand at least that much.
Moreover, educated women know and understand that they do have a right to say no, or not tonight honey.
Those places where all those babies are simply pop pop popping out Yabby, are where uneducated women have no rights, no power, no TV, no lights to read or study by, little or no running water and no entertainment, other than that which they create for themselves?
Part of which may be cheating on absent husbands while they're away; and then watching the fireworks between aroused and competing males, when they return?
Ignorant uneducated folk simply don't understand about family planning, and or all the myriad implications of not practising safe sex; or, simply refraining for a few hours once a month, if only to avoid unwanted, extra hungry mouths?
Sure it is not perfect, but a whole lot better than simply doing/practising nothing.
If we are really serious about population control, we need to get the religions out of the bedroom.
We need to ensure that women become an educated demographic!
A policy shown and supported by UN figures, to have moderated the birth rate, wherever it has replaced blissful ignorance!
And we need to ensure that women have equal rights, wherever they dwell or what religions they may or may not practise. If only that confers on them, a right to say no to unwanted sex or marital unions.
Without a shadow of a doubt, I'm very clearly not the one who doesn't get it!
Rhrosty.