PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — Drought-stricken Haiti is grappling with its most serious food crisis in 15 years, the head of the U.N. World Food Program’s country office said Tuesday.

About 1.5 million Haitians are considered severely insecure when it comes to food, more than double the figure of those facing malnutrition from a government assessment in September.

The World Food Program’s country director, Wendy Bigham, described it as “the most serious food crisis facing Haiti since 2001.”

The number of Haitians in need of urgent food aid spiked over the last six months amid a long drought that has been worsened by the arrival of a strong El Nino weather pattern.

In 2008, violent food riots by Haitians toppled a prime minister. But the World Bank noted last year that extreme poverty fell in Haiti over the last decade.

The World Food Program, which tries to mobilize assistance for countries around the globe, intends to ramp up its food assistance for 1 million Haitians by distributing cash and, to a lesser extent, rations.

While Haiti imports half of its food needs, local harvests are critical for numerous families. If Haiti continues to be parched by drought in the next few months, Haitian farmers will lose their fourth consecutive harvest, Bigham said.