According to reports from the USAID-supported Famine Early Warning System Network ( FEWS NET ) , which is a specialized information network that analyzes information provided by multiple technologies located both in the skies and on the ground , the number of food insecure people in the Horn of Africa region is expected to continue to increase in the coming months due to rising food costs and reduced crop production resulting from the poor performance of the March to May rains . Poor urban populations are particularly vulnerable to rising food prices due to a dependency on the market for the purchase of the majority of staple food needs .