Tens of thousands of children in the African country of Niger are not getting enough food, and an increasing number are dying of malnutrition, according to the aid group Médecins Sans Frontieres (MSF).
A survey last month in the eastern region of Zinder showed "alarming conditions" and a worsening situation, with one in five children suffering from malnutrition, MSF said.
Mortality rates in the Zinder region for children under age five have risen to 5.3 deaths per 10,000 - more than double the internationally recognised emergency threshold of 2 deaths per 10,000, according to an MSF statement.
"Unless children suffering from malnutrition receive massive care, this human disaster will be even more tragic," Christian Captier, general director of MSF Switzerland, said.
The situation was even more critical for children less than 30 months old, with nearly one in three malnourished and 5.6 per cent severely malnourished, it said.
MSF has accused the United Nations of being too slow to mount an emergency response in Niger, where the world body is now trying to feed 2.5 million people.
Medical teams estimate that they will treat more than 40,000 children for severe malnutrition by year-end, it said.