
Hunger crisis deepens in global hotspots as famine risk rises, UN warns
The 'Hunger Hotspots' report by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization and World Food Programme blamed conflict, economic shocks, and climate-related hazards for conditions in the worst-hit areas.
The report predicts food crises in the next five months.
It called for investment and help to ensure aid delivery, which it said was being undermined by insecurity and funding gaps.
'This report is a red alert. We know where hunger is rising and we know who is at risk,' said WFP Executive Director Cindy McCain.
'Without funding and access, we cannot save lives.'
For famine to be declared, at least 20 percent of the population in an area must be suffering extreme food shortages, with 30 percent of children acutely malnourished and two people out of every 10,000 dying daily from starvation or malnutrition and disease.
In Sudan, where famine was confirmed in 2024, the crisis is expected to persist due to conflict and displacement, with almost 25 million people at risk.
South Sudan, hit by flooding and political instability, could see up to 7.7 million people in crisis, with 63,000 in famine-like conditions, the report said.
In Gaza, Israel's continued military operations and blockade have left the entire population of 2.1 million people facing acute food insecurity, with nearly half a million at risk of famine by the end of September, the report said.
In Haiti, escalating gang violence has displaced thousands, with 8,400 already facing catastrophic hunger, while in Mali, conflict and high grain prices put 2,600 people at risk of starvation by the end of August.
Other countries of high concern include Yemen, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Myanmar, and Nigeria.
'Protecting people's farms and animals to ensure they can keep producing food where they are, even in the toughest and harshest conditions, is not just urgent — it is essential,' said FAO Director General QU Dongyu.
Some countries, such as Ethiopia, Kenya, and Lebanon, have improved and have been removed from the FAO and WFP's Hunger Hotspots list.
The UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said on Monday it was drastically scaling back its global humanitarian aid plans because of the 'deepest funding cuts ever' — leaving tens of millions of people facing dire straits.
OCHA said it was seeking $29 billion in funding for 2025 compared to the $44 billion requested initially in December, in a 'hyper-prioritized' appeal.
'Brutal funding cuts leave us with brutal choices,' OCHA chief Tom Fletcher said in a statement.
'All we ask is 1 percent of what you chose to spend last year on war. But this isn't just an appeal for money it's a call for global responsibility, human solidarity, and a commitment to end the suffering.'
In late April, while visiting a hospital in Kandahar in Afghanistan, Fletcher warned: 'Cutting funding for those in greatest need is not something to boast about ... The impact of aid cuts is that millions die.'
With 2025 nearly halfway through, the UN has received only $5.6 billion out of the $44 billion sought initially for this year — a mere 13 percent.
In total, the original plan covered more than 70 countries and aimed to assist nearly 190 million vulnerable people.
Even so, that plan acknowledged there were 115 million people the UN could not reach.
'We have been forced into a triage of human survival,' Fletcher said on Monday.
The mathematics 'is cruel, and the consequences are heartbreaking.'
'Too many people will not get the support they need, but we will save as many lives as we can with the resources we are given,' he said.
Aid will now be directed so that it can 'reach the people and places facing the most urgent needs,' with those in 'extreme or catastrophic conditions' as the starting point, said Fletcher.
'This will ensure that limited resources are directed where they can do the most good — as quickly as possible,' the statement said.

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Arab News
3 hours ago
- Arab News
Jordan and UAE carry out humanitarian airdrops over Gaza as aid efforts intensify
GAZA: The Jordan Armed Forces and the UAE carried out three humanitarian airdrops on Sunday to deliver vital food and supplies to several areas across the Gaza Strip, the Jordan News Agency reported. Using Royal Jordanian Air Force and UAE Air Force C-130 aircraft, the joint operation airlifted 25 tons of food and basic necessities amid worsening humanitarian conditions in the war-torn enclave. The operation forms part of Jordan's ongoing relief efforts, conducted in coordination with the Jordan Hashemite Charity Organisation and international partners, to support the Palestinian population and ease the impact of the conflict, JNA added. The UAE also said on Saturday that it would resume aid drops over Gaza at once, citing the 'critical' humanitarian situation in the blockaded territory, where aid groups have warned of mass starvation. 'The humanitarian situation in Gaza has reached a critical and unprecedented level,' UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al-Nahyan said in a post on X. 'We will ensure essential aid reaches those most in need, whether through land, air or sea. Air drops are resuming once more, immediately.' Since the outbreak of war, the Jordanian military has completed 127 airdrops, in addition to 267 conducted in cooperation with other nations. While airdrops offer a rapid way to deliver emergency aid to areas that are otherwise inaccessible, officials stress that ground convoys remain the most effective and prioritized method of delivering humanitarian assistance. To date, Jordan has sent 181 land convoys into Gaza in coordination with the JHCO, the World Food Programme, and World Central Kitchen. These convoys have delivered a total of 7,932 trucks loaded with aid.

Al Arabiya
5 hours ago
- Al Arabiya
Jordan, UAE airdrop aid to Gaza: Source
Two Jordanian air force C-130 planes and one Emirati plane drop a total of 25 tonnes of aid to Gaza in first airdrop in months, a Jordanian official source tells Reuters. Developing


Arab News
7 hours ago
- Arab News
UN aid chief welcomes ‘humanitarian pauses' in Gaza
GENEVA: The United Nations' aid chief welcomed Israel's announcement Sunday of secure land routes into Gaza for humanitarian convoys, and said the UN would try to reach as many starving people as possible. 'Welcome announcement of humanitarian pauses in Gaza to allow our aid through,' UN emergency relief coordinator Tom Fletcher said on X. 'In contact with our teams on the ground who will do all we can to reach as many starving people as we can in this window.' Fletcher's UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) warned Friday that conditions on the ground in Gaza were 'already catastrophic and deteriorating fast.' 'The starvation crisis is deepening,' it said, warning that hunger and malnutrition increase the risk of illnesses, and adding that the consequences can quickly 'turn deadly.' It said that 'the trickle of supplies that are making it into the Strip are nowhere near adequate to address the immense needs.' OCHA said UN teams were in place to ramp up deliveries into the Palestinian territory 'as soon as they are allowed to do so.' 'If Israel opens the crossings, lets fuel and equipment in, and allows humanitarian staff to operate safely, the UN will accelerate the delivery of food aid, health services, clean water and waste management, nutrition supplies, and shelter materials,' it said. OCHA said constraints imposed by the Israeli authorities had hampered humanitarians' ability to respond. It said that on Thursday, for example, out of 15 attempts to coordinate humanitarian movements inside Gaza, four were 'outright denied,' with another three impeded. One was postponed, and two others had to be canceled, meaning only five missions went ahead. On Friday OCHA issued an aid delivery plan in the event of a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip.