The 2026 Global Report on Food Crises (GRFC) presents a highly uneven global food-security landscape, in which some countries have experienced temporary improvements while others have entered more severe phases of acute food insecurity and malnutrition. Although the number of people projected to face catastrophe declined compared with 2025, severe crises remain concentrated in economically vulnerable and conflict-affected areas. Climate shocks, epidemics, natural disasters, rising food prices, and declining humanitarian and development financing threaten assistance and resilience-building initiatives.
The report uses two classification systems to assess the severity of the food crisis. The IPC/Cadre Harmonisé (IPC/CH) Acute Insecurity scale classifies populations from Phase 1 (Minimal) to Phase 5 (Catastrophe/Famine), based on the severity of food consumption gaps in households’ ability to meet essential needs without using damaging coping strategies. The IPC Acute Malnutrition (IPC AMN) scale, ranging from Phase 1 (Acceptable) to Phase 5 (Extremely Critical), assesses the prevalence and severity of acute malnutrition, particularly among children.
Countries in deterioration and countries in recovery
Between 2025 and mid-2026, acute food insecurity trends differed across the analyzed territories.
In August, 327,000 people were projected to face Catastrophe/Famine (IPC/CH5) across the Gaza Strip, Nigeria, South Sudan, Sudan, and Yemen. Sudan continues to be the country with the largest IPC/CH5-affected populations, with 200,000 people projected to face Catastrophe between June and September 2026, followed by South Sudan, Yemen, Nigeria, and the Gaza Strip. The latter saw improved conditions due to the October 2025 ceasefire.
15 countries experienced substantial deterioration, led by Nigeria, where conflict in northern states, macroeconomic instability, and climate change pushed 5 million people into IPC/CH3 (Crisis) or above. In East Africa, Kenya, Somalia, and South Sudan saw acute insecurity due to poor rainfall and a rise in food prices, which worsened living conditions and increased vulnerability.
Since the launch of the 2026 GRFC, the nutrition situation has worsened in several countries and territories, and acute malnutrition has become very severe. In Kenya, four arid and semi-arid areas were classified in IPC/AMN Phase 5 (Extremely Critical) between October 2025 and February 2026. In Somalia, 23 of the 35 areas analyzed were projected to deteriorate or remain in Phase 4 (Critical); Burhakaba district was classified in Phase 5 and was classified at risk of famine under the worst risk scenario of failing Gu rains from April to June 2026. In South Sudan, ten counties and the Abyei Administrative Area were classified in Phase 5, with four counties at risk of famine from April to July 2026, while another ten counties deteriorated to Phase 4. Pakistan also deteriorated from a nutrition concern to a severe crisis: 16 of the 45 districts analyzed across three provinces were classified in Phase 4 for April–September 2026.
On the other hand, 17 countries experienced improvements. Improved agricultural production resulted in a temporary recovery in Malawi, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Sudan experienced some improvement in states like Al Jazirah and Khartoum due to security stabilization, although severe food insecurity persisted in other regions. In Chad, acute food insecurity decreased because of above-average agricultural production, while it remained high in areas affected by displacement and extreme weather events. In Gaza, all areas are now classified in IPC AMN Phase 1 or 2, partly due to expanded humanitarian assistance and malnutrition treatment. However, poor diets, high levels of disease, and declining aid since February 2026 make this improvement fragile. Madagascar’s nutrition situation has improved and is now classified as a moderate nutrition crisis, though the south and southeast remain vulnerable because of poor diets, disease, limited access to basic services, and persistent food insecurity.
Crisis drivers
The report identifies conflicts, extreme climate events, El Niño, epidemics, and natural disasters as driving factors for acute food insecurity.
The US - Iran hostilities have disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, affecting global energy, fertilizer, and food supply chains. In July-August 2026, Brent crude oil prices fluctuated heavily, spiking up to USD 100 per barrel. Furthermore, drought conditions in key producing regions, including North America and Europe, further reduced global wheat production. Therefore, countries with vulnerable economies that heavily rely on imports (such as Lebanon, Syria, Yemen, Sudan, Afghanistan and Somalia) faced reduced purchasing power, exposing their populations to food insecurity.
The El Niño, a warming of the ocean surface in the central and eastern Pacific Ocean, is projected to intensify and persist in 2027 with major impacts on agricultural production, food systems and livelihoods. In Southern Africa, as well as in parts of West Africa and the Sahel, severe weather anomalies are reducing rainfall. Conversely, rainfall variability in the Horn of Africa brings drought risks alongside heightened flood risks in Somalia and southeastern Ethiopia. El Niño is also expected to disrupt agricultural production in Pakistan and increase the risk of monsoon flooding in Bangladesh and Myanmar.
As for epidemics and other natural disasters, the current Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has caused 2,500 deaths, while quarantine and movement restrictions have disrupted local trade and market access, with spillover risks to neighboring countries.
Population movements
Large-scale population movements continue to shape the food insecurity landscape in 2026, involving both returns to fragile areas and forced displacement driven by conflict.
Returns rose by about 49 percent in 2025 compared with 2024, mostly in countries facing food crises. Although some people returned because local security improved, others left displacement settings because of insecurity, fewer livelihood opportunities, or declining humanitarian assistance. Many returned to areas with damaged livelihoods and limited services, so their return does not necessarily mean that humanitarian needs have fallen. Forcibly displaced people remain particularly vulnerable. More than 30 percent faced or were expected to face high levels of acute food insecurity in Bangladesh, Chad, Lebanon, Mauritania, Myanmar and Uganda; more than 40 percent in Mozambique and Somalia; more than 50 percent in Kenya; and more than 70 percent in Djibouti, Haiti and Sudan.
Humanitarian and development finances
Humanitarian and development funding remains gravely limited. Net official development assistance (ODA) from Development Assistance Committee countries is projected to fall to USD 152 billion, the lowest level since 2014. This would be the third consecutive annual decline. Projected cuts are concentrated in services that address food insecurity and malnutrition by around 40%. Health funding is projected to drop below pre-pandemic levels. Furthermore, reductions in UN core funding are also expected to diminish humanitarian, nutrition, and agricultural assistance in many countries with food crises.
