PANAMA CITY, Feb 5, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - Nicaragua announced Tuesday its withdrawal from the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and demanded its offices shutter in response to a report showing growing hunger in the Central American nation.

President Daniel Ortega's government accused the agency, whose stated mission is to achieve food security and defeat hunger, of having an "unacceptable" and "disrespectful" attitude.

"Consequently, we announce Nicaragua's withdrawal from this organization and demand the immediate closure of its representation and offices in Nicaragua," a statement signed by Foreign Minister Valdrack Jaentschke said.

An FAO report released last month said that the prevalence of undernourishment in Nicaragua had risen from 17.8 percent in the 2018-2020 period to 19.6 percent in 2021-2023.

The government rejected the report "for lacking objectivity, methodological rigor, and for containing false information... and for having been spread maliciously for political purposes."

Critics accuse Ortega, a 79-year-old former guerrilla, of increasingly authoritarian practices since returning to power in 2007.

His government has jailed hundreds of opponents, real and perceived.

It has also shut down more than 5,000 non-governmental organization since 2018 mass protests in which the United Nations estimates more than 300 people died.

Thousands of Nicaraguans have fled into exile, and the regime is under US and EU sanctions. Most independent and opposition media now operate from abroad.