Guatemala at food shortage risk after drought

MEXICO CITY, Aug. 17 (Xinhua) -- Guatemala is at risk of a food shortage because a drought has reduced more than 60 percent of the production of corns and beans in five key provinces, the Food Security Ministry said on Monday.

According to news reaching here, the ministry said the worst hit provinces are Zacapa, Chiquimula, Jalapa, Jutiapa and El Progreso. In El Progreso, 90 percent of the bean crops that farmers planted have been lost.

Around 4,000 settlements across those provinces will suffer food shortages, a figure which represents around 80 percent of the population there.

State-run welfare body the Social Cohesion Council said it is already financially supporting 136 towns at the highest risk.

In May, the government approved a plan worth 273 million quetzals (around 33 million U.S. dollars) to cover such emergencies.