Several aid groups have warned that the Strait of Hormuz blockade is affecting access to food and medicine for millions of people worldwide.
The US-Israeli war with Iran has caused traffic disruption in the strategic waterway, as Tehran warned it would not allow “enemy ships” to cross the Strait. Meanwhile, Washington issued a final ultimatum for the reopening of the maritime corridor, warning it would unleash ‘hell’ on Iranian infrastructure if the blockade has not ended by Tuesday evening.
Routes Disruption
The ongoing conflict has impacted key shipping routes, including the Strait of Hormuz and routes from strategic hubs such as Dubai, Doha and Abu Dhabi, causing a surge in transport and insurance costs.
The Strait of Hormuz is a crucial waterway linking the Arabian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea, through which around a fifth of daily global oil supplies and LNG supplies pass.
In addition to creating a global energy crisis, the blockade of vital shipping routes has disrupted the flow of goods, forcing aid groups to pursue costlier, more time-consuming routes, according to the Associated Press (AP).
The disruption has also led to a delay in the delivery of essential aid supplies, including food and medicine, threatening humanitarian operations in many countries around the world.
Partial Easing of Passage
Despite the blockade, Iran announced in late March it would “facilitate and expedite” humanitarian aid through the Strait of Hormuz, according to Euronews.
The Iranian ambassador to the UN in Geneva, Ali Bahreini, said his country had accepted a request from the UN to let humanitarian aid and agricultural shipments move through the critical waterway.
On Saturday, Iran said it has approved the passage of vessels carrying humanitarian and essential goods through the Strait of Hormuz, Tasnim News Agency reported citing a letter from the Agriculture Ministry’s trade development office.
This directive allows ships transporting essential goods and livestock feed to transit under designated protocols.
Humanitarian Risks
The UN has warned that the current crisis is the most significant supply chain disruption since COVID. Shipping costs have surged by 20% as vessels are forced into lengthy detours, delaying vital goods and threatening global food security, according to AP.
“The war on Iran and disruption to the Strait of Hormuz risk pushing humanitarian operations beyond their limits,” the associate director for public affairs and communications for Africa for the International Rescue Committee, Madiha Raza, said.
She added that this shock to global supply chains could extend beyond the fighting, affecting lifesaving aid for months.
In light of this, several aid groups reported delays in supply deliveries. The World Food Program (WFP) has tens of thousands of metric tons of food stalled in transit, while the International Rescue Committee (IRC) warns that $130,000 in life-saving medicine for Sudan is currently stranded in Dubai.
Meanwhile, nearly 670 boxes of therapeutic food for malnourished children in Somalia are stuck in India, and the UN Population Fund has confirmed equipment delays affecting 16 different countries.
Costly Options
In a bid to keep supply lines open, aid groups are opting for longer and more costly routes, detouring around the southern tip of Africa which adds weeks to transit times.
Others, including UNICEF and Save the Children International, are utilizing a more expensive mix of land, sea, and air transport to move vital goods and avoid the blockade.
In this context, UNICEF Chief of Global Transport and Logistics Jean-Cedric Meeus said that his agency has pivoted to a mix of land and air routes to deliver vaccines to Nigeria and Iran. It now sends vaccines to Iran via Türkiye, with a 20% increase in costs and additional 10 days to delivery time.
The blockade has also crippled aid to Sudan, forcing Save the Children to reroute Dubai-based supplies via Saudi Arabia and the Red Sea. This new path is 10 days longer and 25% more expensive, jeopardizing essential medical stocks for 90 Sudanese health facilities at a time when millions are on the brink of famine.
Furthermore, the increase in transport and food costs makes it hard for people to seek help within their countries. Doctors Without Borders reported that surging fuel prices in Somalia have impacted people’s ability to get care.
Rising fuel prices in Nigeria have also driven clinics and mobile health teams to scale back their operations, the IRC said.
Global Hunger Risks
The current conflict risks exacerbating global hunger. A prolonged conflict through June could drive an additional 45 million people to acute hunger, the WFP warned. This would bring the total number of people facing severe food insecurity worldwide to a staggering 363 million.
Fertilizer supplies will take a hard hit, particularly impacting small farmers in poor countries, as about 30% of fertilizers come through the Strait of Hormuz.
In response, the UN established a task force to secure fertilizer shipments – modeled after the Black Sea Grain Initiative – yet aid groups warn this will not solve the underlying crisis. Without a ceasefire and additional government funding to combat rising transport costs, humanitarian agencies say they will be unable to maintain life-saving operations.
