♪ brent: this is dw news. the coronavirus, the sick and starving, warning the pandemic would cause famine of biblical proportions. >> millions of civilians living in conflict scscarred nations fe being pushed to the brink of starvation with the specter of famine a very real and dangerous possibility. brent: so what if anything can the u.n. food prprogram do?

we will ask. with humans s in lockdown, thehe outside world belongs to birds and beastss. it is a new scene for filmmakers to capture. the global race for coronavirus vaccine, a german company wins approval to start the first clinical tests on humans. ♪ brent: i'm brent goff. to our viewers around the world, welcome. a virus that could make us sick and leave us hungry. the u.n. world food program is sounding the alarm over food shortages caused by the global pandemic, saying we could see famines of biblical proportions. there are already 800 million people without enough to eat and

the pandemic could force 130 million more to the brink of starvationon by the endd of f ts year. [a[applause] reporter: farmers in south sudan try to ward off the latesest invasionon. locusts are threatening to destroy what crops they have left, in a country where hunger is a part of d daily life.e. after civil war, the majority of people are in a good crisis. now w things are looking even worse. >> last yearar we had to feed 5 million people becacause of fighting. in 202020 we have hahad locust invasions and the other isis the covid-19 pandemic which coululd doububle the people in acute hunger by the end of 2020 0 acrs the world. reporter: those numbers are shocking. >> we are on the brink of a huhunger pandemic.

130 millionn people could be pushed to thee brink of starvation by the end of 2020. that is 265 million people. reporter: government lockdowns are taking their toll. in brazil it is estimated after 40 million informal workers have been dragged into extreme poverty. handouts in rio de janeiro are keeping people fed. others are doing whatever they can to survive area -- survive. >> it is difficult. we are selling food in order to survive your advice my daughter-in-law and me -- survive, my daughter-in-law and me. reporterer: organanizations like u.n.'s world food program are pleading for more food funds. with many countries battling for economic survival, perhaps a

lack of global leadership, humanitarian catastrophe could be closer than ever. brent: from a vital pandemic to a hunger pandemic. -- viral pandemic to a hunger pandemic. this is the chief spokeswoman in germany. why will millions more people go hungry because of the coronavirurus? connect the dots. >> look whwhat is hahappening ad ththe worldld. lolook at what is happenining in western cocountries and m multiy that by god knowows what, and yu can see ththe economic turmoil arouound the worldld. so many p people are lolosing js and our concern is our data have found the number of people acutely hungry could go up to one quarter million people. the virus is going around the

globe like a tsunami of suffering. men, women and children we are concerned about some of those in refugee camps, very close to each other. how do you do social distancing? we are working on that. the thing that worries us, this year we have to be 100 million people. without us -- feed 100 million people. without us they would die. we have to do this job to feed those people who are suffering from conflicts and wars and climate change. on top of that is the coronavirus. this will make everything worse. brent: how is the funding situation for the world food program? is it s stable? >> we have to beg for evevery dollar a and e euro. we are doioing that as we speak. my boss was at the u.n. security

council. the world food program doesn't only do the food assistance. we need money for logistic response. we take care of the whole community. we will aid 120 countries, chartering ships, planes, flying in aid workers, nurses, doctors, ventilators. we are building field hospitals. all of that needs to be papaid for. that h has to happen now. it h has to happen today, tomorrow, this week. we need $350 million. so far we have received a quarter of that. brent: many humanitarian issues are being neglected as the world deals with this pandemic. what is your message to governments tonigight? >> we are all in this..

this is s not a crisis sosomewhe over there or over there far away. this is affecting all of us. we are staying h home and trying to help each other. ifif you live in africa, the middle east, in a war zone, y yu don't t have the luxurieies we . and if w we don'tt help,p, therl be a hunger pandemic. it is s our naturall selelf-intt is t to help our neieighbors. if we don't t help them, t the pandndemic will get out of conol and the e virus w will come bact us. we have to stand together, the world has to stand together like it has never before. brent: the chief spokesperson here in berlin with the world food program. thank you. today is the 50th anniversary of earth day, a milestone deserving

global attention except this year nearly half of the population is under lockdown restrictions. with humans stuck inside, wildlife is returning as staking claim to fail and and deserted streets -- claim to silent and deserted streets. filmmakers in bogotá are introducing the humans to the neighbors s they didn't realize ththey have always had. reporter: the s&p city is a a testing groundnd for some of the ininhabitants. mamany people fororget the colon capital is s surrounded by mountains, grasslands and wetlands. people have captured images of wild animals they never knew lived close by. wildlife is closing in on the city, explained by thisis ecolologist. >> the presence of wild animals didn't used to be noticeablee in the cityty. they were close to the city in the easternrn mountaiains.

asas human activity slowows dow, wild animals are sensing the chance to extend their range of it. reporter: the documentary filmmakekers launch the massive project and have collected the wildlife footage. this habitat is for everyone. >> this has a crucial function.. think of a futuree where people get useded to observing and filming wiwildlife that is closr to their homes, in backyards and on balconies so they can learn about it. reporter: a few days after it was launched, they garnered thee support of e eight institutions and active participation of locals who feel the project helps people stop and think.. >> we inhabit t the same territory. we arrived much later than the

wild animalsls who live here. we are not the center of the universe. reporterer: most of the people captured i images from their windows s but some u used droneo film changeses without using - - leaving their homes. >> it t is important for us to e aware we are not the only ones livingng in this area, t there e many living g beings. they are always there even if we can't see them. we should respect them. reporterer: all of the fofootags the e same objective, , to use e loft down as a tool for learning -- the lockdown as a tool for learning. brent: for more on the effects of the coronavirus, i'm joined by the director of the u.n. environment programs europe office. we just heard in that report a positive example of the coronavirus and its impact on

the environment. i'm wondering if we are sugarcoating the reality. is it true?e? >> i want to wish h you allll hy earthh day. these are e beautiful images. thesese are images that are frad in h human tragedy. ththey are temporarary images.s. asas we face thehe common crisie seee in ththe environmnment to t of w waste being thrown,n, medil wastste, chemicacals used to fit the virus. we are calling as well to improve the assisted inability -- the sustainability by includuding on earth day the management of waste that we are creating to fight this terrible virus. brent: do you think on this anniversary -- obviously everyone on the planet is thinking about the pandemic and

the coronavirus. are we neglecting the equally urgent fight against the claimant crisis on our p planet -- clilimate crisis onon our pl? >> we h have got no timime to w. the claimimant crisisis will be therere s still after the c covd crisis three we have to o tackle this challenge of the century which is climate change and biodiversity loss. to do that, we are p pleading after the crisisis we build back betttter and tryry to avoid to bounce back badly to the systems that have created also this crisis we are facing today. i'm building back better -- by building back better, we invnvet and transform the economy, more circular, greener economy that will create new jobs and will have us meeting the paris

agreement challenges and the climate change prorocesses can e turneded back if we invest in solutions now by changing the economic model and by transforming our economy. this involves a number of education tools. i would like to signal that wewe have launchehed the earth school whichh is a way to give younger generations can find in their homes and may be looking for, eager to learn about nature, the earth schohool is giving thehem this. together with unesco, we have launched this tool which is absosolutely wononderful to crce this a awareness a about natured the fact we are linked to n nate all ththe time. brent: letet's hope whwhen is te

10100th anniverersary, we can celebrate a a planet that is healththier than it is s today. the didirector at the u.n. environment program, we appreciate your ininsights. thank you. >> thanks. brent: here's a look at other stories making headlines around the world. the british government says 759 people have died in the u.k. hospitals. the official total death toll is more than 18,000 butut the financiaial times newspaper says the government has undercounted depth and puts the figure at more than double, 40,000.. flash flooding in one yet many city has left dozens injured, some d dead. police blocked and destroyed by -- buiuildings arere blocked and destroyed. the country is struggling. antigovernment protests in lebanon have flared up despite

the lockdown. the demonstrators, some traveling in cars to maintain social distancing, are angry about the worsening social and economic conditions. protests have been taking place on a daily basis before the pandemic. as worldwide covid-19 cases surge past 2.5 million, the race to develop a vaccine is gaining fresh urgency. a german drug firm won approval to begin human trials of a possible vaccine. there are dozens of potential candidates and development in europe, china and the u.s., but it will be months for a treatment is available. reporter: governments across the world have different strategies to -- to battle the pandemic but they agree on one thing. >> the global public health crisis caused by covid type --

covid-19 will not be over until science finds a vaccine. >> the best way to defeat coronavirus is through a vaccine. >> the regulations will remain until we have a vaccine and medicine but mainly until we find a vaccine. 9 finding a vaccine is crucial to ending the crisis. people are making progress. a german firm has become the first company in germany to receive a permit to conduct human trials. >> this is the fifth clinical trial in the world in the quest to find a vaccine. it is a milestone. reporter: in britain scientists are racing ahead. researchers at oxford university plan to start human trials thursday. the scientists here had a head start. they had been workiking on other coronaviruses before this latest

outbreakak began. >> whehen the new one e emerged, there e was already worork in od on the mers coronavirus. what h happened was the genenetc code from the mututant cororonas was discovered in january o of this year r and it was p possibo go back to the genetic code and make these new vaccines rapidly. reporter: global ininvestment is high in the race. the u.k. government has invested 20 million pounds in this study. they want to invest in good -- in productioion capacityty to distribute quickly. researchers in switzerland are confident they will have one. they hope to inoculate the entire population by october, very ambitious. most researchers think a viable vaccine won't be available until next year at the earliest. brent: i am joined by a

virologist at lancaster university. good to have you. this is good news. human trials are beginning in the u.k. and in germany. it seems that the whole process for developing a vaccine has been accelerated. are we looking at having one on the market now sooner rather than later ? >> thiss is good news.s. this is attributed to the information n that has beeeen provided by china to o relate explploit that informamation and develop the vaccine. thee development o of the vaccie is the first part t that has ben completed by more than a dozen research groups. the next majoror for time taking process is the valalidation, the huhuman trials, phases 1, 2 and three. different countries have different approaches t to condut these.

the one that is being tried in the u.k., that has ememerged -- merged phasase one adnnd two.. so i in terms of looooking intoe side effects, they are likely to have a vaccine at the end of this year. brent: it could be deployed next year. we are talking about getting maybe the ends of vaccine samples to people around the planet. that takes mass production. are we prepared for that, equiuipped to makeke it happen quickly? >> once ththe vaccine would bece available, that t would be provn and have orgrganization -- the next big challenge would be, could we scale t that went up to the level that itit meets a allf thee demandsds? we will kekeep this one in mindd

especicially in the unprecedentd time. the vaccine that is being manufactured and tested in the human trial in the u.k., t they have already quite collaborative efforts from two compmpanies. those e have started manufufactg -- if the vaccine went ththrough the clinical trial, thosose woud be sufficient to at least immunize the most vulnerable group upupfront. certainly this would be t the nt challenge once the vaccine were to become available. brent: let's hope the vast track works and everything turns out in a positive way. thank you. joining us from lancaster university. we appreciate your insights. >> sure. brent: the german car industry is warming its engines for a

return to production. volkswagen and bmw will restart in the coming weeks after shutting down because of the pandemic. tyler has already restarted. workers on its factory floor are keeping a safe distance but business is not back to normal. >> the face mask is a part of the work uniform. those here have to follow the new regulations. that means social distancing. for weeks this assembly line was shuttered but now they have returned to build engines again. >> the spirit is there, the team is motivated and it is a sign to society things are moving ahead. >> plant is down to two shifts per day and not even half of the 19,000 employees have returned. >> we could get full swing in a few weeks, but demand has to be

there. without demand, we are not going to ramp up production. >> industry experts point out before the virus, car producers faced a more challenging environment with falling sales. >> at the moment we don't have corona to deal with. before that there was a big loss of demand and transformation of the car industry towards electro mobility costs a lot of money. now the industry is expressing -- experiencing turbrbulence. >> volkswagen is calling on the government for a purchase premium. daimler and volkswagen -- bmw are also behind this. opinions vary how such a scheme would be. brent: a glimmer of hope for soccer fans, the german soccer league on thursday to outline a proposal to restart the

bundesliga season without spectators. the league may need special permission from the german government. there is one sticking point. the coronavirus testing could be key to any proposal for soccer. >> the german football league wants to get back to business. if the season fails to restart, they stand to lose 300 million euros in tv money andnd estimatd 700 50 million euros overall. contact in football is inevitable. the league has drawn up a plan with hygiene guidelines to play the remaining league games behind closed doors. it w would include limiting the number of people on the stadium grounds into 300, split into three zones. the german health minister has expressed openness to restarting

the league on may 9 under conditions. >> if it can be achieved with a reduced or as far as possible excluded risk of infection, it can happen. it needs to be evaluated. >> one of the conditions would be the regular coronavirus testing of everybody involved. around 20,000 test over the rest of the season. germany's public health institute have a problem with that. >> i don't see why certain parts of the population whether athletes or any other group in which society has a certain interest should be routinelyy screened. >> the issue of germamany's capacity for testing is central to whether the bundesliga can actually restart. brent: who will pay? the international olympic committee has been forced to backtrack over who will pay the

cost. japan said a section on the ioc website quoted the prime minister as saying his country would pay the extra cost. now some japanese scientists are doubting the olympics will take place at all next year because of the virus. >> with the olympic fireworks on hold until nexext year,r, organs face a challenge and a a bill. but the question of who picks up the tension is -- a section on the ioc website said japan would cover the cost as it would have done under the terms of the existing agreement for 2020. the sentiment angered japan's government, and that has since been deleted. >> there is no such agreement related to additional costs.

>> estimates suggest postponement will cost $2 billion to $6 billion, tough to swswallow especially at the time of economic struggle. the ioc has already hinted next year's g games may need to be scaled back. >> will be exploring all opportunities -- we will be exploring all opportunities and reduce the cost that have been caused by the postponement. >> that is if it takes place at all. the olympics attract hundreds of thousands from all over the world. that could be a recipe for disaster. >> i am very pessimimistic about holding olympic gamames next summerer unless you hold olympic games in a totallyly different structure such as no audience or

a very limited participation. >> organizers to have a plan b may be because plan a is difficult enough to navigate. brent: this is dw news. i will be back to take you through the day. high hopes and a reality check, the coronavirus xc we want and the face masks that we will have to wear. ♪ [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org]

. the death t toll in france is not passed twenty one thousand ministers are looking at how to manage the post lockdown period president went to britney to thank the workers that'll keep in food supply flowing across from. meanwhile one out of every two workers in the private sector. wait a minute l. pedigo says they're not ten point two million employees whose salaries are being paid by the state. the world food program is warning of widespread famine if the trtrend of f virus pandedemic it controlled suit these words came eveven as the g.