The November 8 edition of L’Osservatore Romano devoted front-page coverage to a World Food Program report on the rising numbers of those who are on the brink of starvation, from 27 million in 2019 to 45 million today.

David Beasley, the program’s executive director, attributed the rise to “conflict, climate change and COVID-19.” “Data that ought to make you reflect,” commented the author of the unsigned article in the Vatican newspaper.