Humanitarian Crisis

In a joint statement, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the World Food Programme (WFP) warned today that conflict, climate change, and soaring costs in South Sudan are causing some of the highest levels of hunger in the world. The warning comes as the heads of the three United Nations agencies wrapped up a three-day visit to the country.

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) is sounding the alarm that its lifesaving emergency food and nutrition assistance in Somalia is at imminent risk of grinding to a halt without immediate new funding. The organization's resources are expected to be depleted within weeks without urgent replenishment, as Somalia faces an "extremely worrying humanitarian situation" with 4.4 million people experiencing acute hunger.

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) released its annual Emergency Watchlist on Wednesday, spotlighting the 20 countries most likely to face escalating humanitarian needs in the coming year. According to the dire ranking, the top five crises are Sudan, the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT), Myanmar, Syria and South Sudan, as war and climate change fuel new and ongoing humanitarian emergencies around the world.

Alarming new food security data from South Sudan shows that 57 percent of the population will be acutely food insecure by the 2025 lean season. Three United Nations agencies warned on Monday that those fleeing war in Sudan, as well as young children, face some of the highest levels of hunger and malnutrition in South Sudan, as economic pressures, climate extremes and the effects of the conflict in Sudan drive a worsening hunger crisis.

As the current hostilities in Sudan are entering the third month, the humanitarian situation across the country continues to deteriorate and a catastrophic food crisis looms, if fighting does not stop.  Since the clashes started on April 15, more than 2.1 million people have been displaced, including nearly 1.7 million within the country and about half a million to neighboring countries. Among the displaced are more than 1 million children.

Amid continued violence and mass displacement in Haiti, the recruitment and use of children by armed groups surged 200 percent in 2025, according to a new report by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). Published on Thursday, the report underscores the deep protection crisis facing children in Haiti.

The United Nations, alongside its humanitarian partners and the Nigerian government, is urgently appealing for US$516 million to respond to the most critical needs of 2.5 million people in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe (BAY) states in north-east Nigeria this year. Women and children are particularly affected by the humanitarian crisis, accounting for eight out of ten people in immediate need.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reports that aid shortages are taking a growing toll on Somalia's most vulnerable people, leaving them without access to vital healthcare, nutritional support, and safe water. The brutal funding cuts are devastating for severely malnourished children, who have already lost or will soon lose access to life-saving treatment.

The World Food Programme (WFP) issued a dire warning on Friday, highlighting that millions in Somalia are at risk of worsening hunger and malnutrition due to critical funding shortages. These shortages have forced the United Nations agency to reduce its emergency food assistance support by over two-thirds. By November, the WFP will only be able to provide assistance to 350,000 people, down from 1.1 million in August.

The United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) is warning of surging needs for more than 3.4 million displaced people and their hosts communities in the face of recent destructive flooding in Africa’s Sahel region and beyond. In Nigeria, Chad, Niger, Burkina Faso, Mali and Cameroon above-average rain falls and flooding have killed hundreds, displaced thousands and affected millions.

The humanitarian crisis in Yemen is spiraling out of control, with a staggering number of people facing hunger, including extreme conditions, and the United Nations’ ability to deliver aid severely hampered by ongoing conflict, funding shortages, and arbitrary detentions. This was the stark warning delivered on Monday by UN relief chief Tom Fletcher during a briefing to the UN Security Council.

Inflation, insufficient humanitarian assistance and dollarization of food prices are contributing to Lebanon’s food crisis, the international humanitarian organization Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) has said. New data released by the United Nations (UN) and aid agencies this week reveals that 1.4 million people, including both Lebanese and refugees, are experiencing high levels of food insecurity in the country, while malnutrition and insufficient food consumption are prevalent.

The United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) is calling for immediate and collective action to confront the unparalleled impact of climate change and its profound effects on displaced populations and their host communities at the 28th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28) in Dubai as nearly 60 percent of the world’s displaced find themselves in countries most vulnerable to the impact of climate change

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has raised a dire warning about the escalating food crisis in Sudan Wednesday as more than 20 million people are facing hunger and close to 4 million people have been displaced as a result of the conflict. Meanwhile, the international human rights organization Amnesty International (AI) said in a new report Thursday, that extensive war crimes are being committed in Sudan as the conflict between the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) ravages the country.

Nearly one in ten people in Burkina Faso have been displaced by conflict. Most worryingly, the rate of severe food insecurity has nearly doubled compared to last year, with over 600,000 people in emergency hunger levels during this lean season, warn 28 international aid organizations operating in the country. In a joint statement released today, the non-governmental organizations (NGOs) say an urgent increase in funding for humanitarian assistance is required to respond to the current situation in Burkina Faso.