Acute food insecurity is set to worsen across 16 countries and territories between November 2025 and May 2026, a new joint United Nations report has warned.
The report, Hunger Hotspots FAO–WFP early warnings on acute food insecurity November 2025 to May 2026 outlook, was released by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the UN World Food Programme (WFP) on November 12, 2025.
The report cited six countries and territories of highest concern — Haiti, Mali, Palestine, South Sudan, Sudan and Yemen — where populations face an imminent risk of catastrophic hunger.
Six more countries — Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Myanmar, Nigeria, Somalia, and the Syrian Arab Republic — were classified as very high concern.
Four other hotspots were Burkina Faso, Chad, Kenya and the situation of the Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh.
‘Acute food insecurity’ means families cannot meet their basic food needs and often resort to desperate measures, such as skipping meals or selling essential possessions.
Delayed action will cost lives and increase humanitarian costs, the analysis warned.
It highlighted four main drivers of the crisis – Conflict and violence, Economic shocks, Climate extremes, and Reduce humanitarian aid.
According to the report, 14 of the 16 hotspots identified conflict and violence as the primary drivers of hunger.
Global economic fragility, high debt burdens and uneven recovery are also expected to continue deepening acute food insecurity across several hotspots.
In Eastern Africa, South Sudan’s economy is projected to contract by more than 30 per cent in 2025. Kenya faces elevated maize prices following reduced 2024 production, while another dry season raises concerns over reduced supplies and persistently high price.
Beyond conflict and economic crises, weather extremes and increased climate variability are further exacerbating acute food insecurity. La Nina conditions, expected to persist until early 2026, heighten the risk of floods, droughts and tropical cyclones across several regions.
East Africa remains highly vulnerable. In South Sudan, floods pose a major threat, with up to 1.6 million people at risk as the Nile and its tributaries overflow, while rainfall deficits in eastern areas are expected to reduce cereal production, exacerbating already extreme food insecurity. Somalia and Kenya are forecast to face another below‑average rainy season, threatening crops and pastures.
As these hunger hotspots edge closer to catastrophic conditions, or even famine, humanitarian funding is falling dangerously short. As of the end of October 2025, only $10.5 billion of the $29 billion required to assist people most at risk had been received.
Severe shortfalls are crippling emergency responses, forcing deep ration cuts and reducing access to food for the most vulnerable groups with refugee food assistance at a breaking point.
Assistance coverage has dropped across most hunger hotspots. Critical nutrition and school feeding programmes have been suspended in some countries, leaving children, refugees, and displaced families at extreme risk.
Across the hunger hotspot countries, household food production and incomes remain insufficient to meet basic needs. Programmes that build resilience are now crucial to protect livelihoods and reduce dependence on emergency aid.
The two UN agencies called on the international community to urgently refocus global attention on famine prevention and scale up investments in long-term food security and resilience.