In this fact sheet, we will look at the history of hunger in Africa and current trends, review the unique characteristics and challenges of each of the five subregions, discuss why hunger is so persistent on the continent, and touch on some of the solutions that are making a difference.
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Read the latest news and analysis about Africa and food insecurity below.
July 4, 2026 In Nigeria, some 35 million people are projected to experience acute and severe food insecurity during the 2026 lean season, according to the most recent Cadre Harmonisé, representing the worst levels of hunger recorded in a decade. The hunger crisis is worst in the country's no...
June 16,2026 In Ethiopia, Africa’s second-most populous country, roughly one in eight Ethiopians suffer food shortages in mid-2026 in many region-specific overlapping crises caused by fighting, drought, population displacements, refugees, sky-high prices, and sudden cuts in international a...
June 18, 2026 Food insecurity the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has formed a vicious circle this year with the latest Ebola virus outbreak, now the 17th recorded and the largest to date in terms of people infected. The Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) is an example of an N...
June 14, 2026 Kenya continues to face severe hunger and malnutrition in its arid and semi‑arid lands (ASAL), where drought, high food prices, and weakened pastoralist livelihoods have pushed millions into crisis. According to the U.S. Famine Early Warning System (FEWS NET), 2.5–2....
May 3, 2026 Dr. Mohamed Warsame Dualeh, a Somali physician, refugee-health leader, humanitarian official, and later diplomat, died on April 25, 2026 in Germany. He is survived by his wife, Marie Therese Lenz, and children, Amalie, Issa, and Edna. Among the positions he held during h...
April 12, 2026 The arid, poor, western region of Sudan, called Darfur, has been a complex emergency for twenty-three years, with mass displacement and an increasing problem of starvation and malnutrition. Aid to prevent starvation is prevented by the inability of aid agencies to reach those in ...
A study published this month, February 2026, about long-term malnutrition, measured by the degree of a child's stunting (low height for age) in Rwanda found that despite economic progress, low growth rates were found in 27% of children in northern areas. The authors note that "In addition to food...
As of early 2026, Mali continues to face a deep nutritional crisis. While there has been long-term incremental progress in reducing chronic malnutrition (stunting), acute malnutrition (wasting) remains at emergency levels, particularly in the conflict...
Childhood malnutriiton can be addressed by their communities via an initiative in Somalia developed by the "Maternal, Infant, Young Child and Adolescent Nutrition (MIYCAN) working group and fostered by UNICEF and the federal department of health of Somalia in the Horn of Africa. ...
Real-time food insecurity forecasting is critical. Early warning systems identify emerging risks, such as conflict, climate shocks, and price spikes, months in advance, enabling humanitarian actors to mobilize resources and intervene before food insecurity escalates into widespread malnutrition or f...
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