Media Home
UN Web TV
UN Audiovisual Library
UN PhotoWFP / HUNGER HOTSPOTS REPORT
Download
There is no media available to download.
Share
STORY: WFP / HUNGER HOTSPOTS REPORT
TRT: 02:48
SOURCE: WFP
RESTRICTIONS: PLEASE CREDIT WFP ON SCREEN
LANGUAGES: ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: SEE THE SHOTLIST
04 FEB 25, JABALIYA, NORTHERN GAZA
1. Various shots, Jabaliya, Northern Gaza
Jabaliya and Beit Lahia are among the most devastated and inaccessible areas in the Gaza Strip.
06 DEC 25, KHAN YOUNIS, GAZA STRIP
2. Various shots, WFP Hot Meals Distribution
This WFP supported hot meals kitchen used to provide 15,000 meals a day.
The humanitarian situation in Gaza is spiraling into total chaos. Recent aid deliveries are a drop in the bucket and nowhere near enough. More than 80 days of closed border crossings have pushed families to the brink of starvation and only a massive scale up of assistance will avert further suffering. Now hordes are rushing to any signs of aid, creating volatile and dangerous conditions for everyone.
05 JUNE 2025, ROME, ITALY
3. SOUNDBITE (English) Jean-Martin Bauer, Director, Food Security Analysis:
“Conflict is the main driver of crisis. We’ve identified five countries or territories of highest concern. This is Sudan, South Sudan, Palestine, Mali and Haiti. And conflict is driving very high levels of acute food insecurity. That's why we highlight these places. There's an on-going famine in Sudan and also a risk of famine in the case of Gaza. And all of those are driven by conflict and lack of access for humanitarians.”
06-08 APR 2025, KHARTOUM, SUDAN
4. Various shots, War-torn Downtown Khartoum
Two years of war has turned Sudan into the world’s largest hunger catastrophe and famine is spreading. Nearly half the population – 24.6 million people – faces acute hunger. Some 638,000 people face catastrophic hunger (IPC5) – the highest number globally.
18 APR 2025, KHARTOUM, SUDAN
5. Various shots, children being tested for malnutrition in Omdurman area of Khartoum
Famine is confirmed in ten locations in Sudan- eight in North Darfur (including Zamzam Camp) and two in the Western Nuba Mountains. Another 17 areas - including areas of North, South and East Darfur, the Nuba Mountains, Khartoum, and Gezira - are at risk of famine. In the hardest-hit areas, one in three children are acutely malnourished, surpassing famine thresholds.
27 APR 2025, TAWILA, SUDAN
6. Various shots, WFP food trucks arriving in Tawila Camp (Darfur) from Chad
The upcoming rainy season can make convoys like this coming from Chad extremely difficult as roads become impassible. WFP has been mobilizing assistance to reach people across different parts of Darfur and Northern State.
05 JUNE 2025, ROME, ITALY
7. SOUNDBITE (English) Jean-Martin Bauer, Director, Food Security Analysis:
“Over the next few months, we're very concerned about the reduction in humanitarian funding, which will lead to decline in assistance. That means smaller rations and reduced numbers of people receiving much-needed humanitarian assistance in some of the world's most vulnerable countries.”
18, 20 SEP 2024, PORT-AU-PRINCE, HAITI
8. Various shots, general views of Lycée Marie-Jeanne
Brutal violence perpetrated by armed groups in Haiti has resulted in large scale displacement and record levels of hunger, outpacing humanitarian efforts.
20 SEP 2024, PORT-AU-PRINCE, HAITI
9. Various shots, Nutrition testing in Lycée Marie-Jeanne
Hunger in Haiti has reached record levels, as violence, displacement and economic collapse drive the country to the brink. The April 2025 IPC report shows more than 5.7 million people – over half the population - face acute food insecurity. Roughly 8,400 people, primarily in displacement sites like this one, are facing catastrophic hunger (IPC Phase 5), with extreme food shortages, severe malnutrition and the risk of starvation.
A new joint UN report warns that people in five hunger hotspots around the world face extreme hunger and risk of starvation and death in the coming months unless there is urgent humanitarian action and a coordinated international effort to de-escalate conflict, stem displacement, and mount an urgent full-scale aid response.
The latest Hunger Hotspots report shows that Sudan, Palestine, South Sudan, Haiti and Mali are hotspots of highest concern, with communities already facing famine, at risk of famine or confronted with catastrophic levels of acute food insecurity due to intensifying or persisting conflict, economic shocks, and natural hazards. The devastating crises are being exacerbated by growing access constraints and critical funding shortfalls.
The semi-annual Hunger Hotspots report is an early-warning and predictive analysis of deteriorating food crises for the next five months. Developed and published with financial support from the European Union through the Global Network Against Food Crises (GNAFC), the latest edition projects a serious deterioration of acute food insecurity in 13 countries and territories – the world’s most critical hunger hotspots in the coming months.
In addition to hotspots of highest concern, Yemen, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Myanmar and Nigeria are now hotspots of very high concern and require urgent attention to save lives and livelihoods. Other hotspots include Burkina Faso, Chad, Somalia, and Syria.
“This report makes it very clear: hunger today is not a distant threat – it is a daily emergency for millions,” FAO Director-General QU Dongyu said. “We must act now, and act together, to save lives and safeguard livelihoods. 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.”
“This report is a red alert. We know where hunger is rising and we know who is at risk,” said Cindy McCain, World Food Programme Executive Director. “We have the tools and experience to respond, but without funding and access, we cannot save lives. Urgent, sustained investment in food assistance and recovery support is crucial as the window to avert yet more devastating hunger is closing fast.”
In Sudan, Famine was confirmed in 2024. Conditions are expected to persist due to the continuing conflict and ongoing displacement, particularly in the Greater Kordofan and Greater Darfur regions. Displacement is likely to increase further during the outlook period while humanitarian access remains restricted. The circumstances are driving the country towards the risk of partial economic collapse, with high inflation severely limiting food access. Around 24.6 million people were projected to face Crisis or worse (IPC Phase 3 or above) levels of acute food insecurity, including 637,000 people facing Catastrophe (IPC Phase 5) through May 2025.
In Palestine, the likelihood of famine in the Gaza Strip is growing as large-scale military operations hinder the ability to deliver vital food and non-food humanitarian assistance. In addition to the humanitarian crisis unfolding in the Gaza Strip, high food prices coupled with exhausted livelihoods and a commercial blockade will accelerate an economic collapse. The entire population in Gaza – 2.1 million people – is projected to face Crisis or worse (IPC Phase 3 or above) levels of acute food insecurity, with 470,000 projected to face Catastrophe (IPC Phase 5) through September 2025.
South Sudan faces compounding threats from political tensions, the risk of flooding, and economic challenges. Approximately 7.7 million people – or 57 percent of the population – are projected to face high levels of acute food insecurity (IPC Phase 3 or above) between April and July 2025, with 63,000 people projected to face Catastrophe (IPC Phase 5) levels of acute food insecurity. An IPC update released after the report’s finalization indicated Risk of Famine in two areas of the country and confirmed the bleak outlook.
In Haiti, record levels of gang violence and insecurity are displacing communities and crippling aid access. Over 8,400 internally displaced persons (IDPs) already facing Catastrophe (IPC Phase 5) levels of acute food insecurity in the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area by June 2025.
Meanwhile, in Mali, high grain prices and ongoing conflict are eroding the coping capacities of the most vulnerable households, particularly in conflict-affected areas. Around 2 600 people are at risk of Catastrophe (CH Phase 5) from June to August 2025 if assistance is not provided on time.
In Myanmar, the impact of the recent major earthquake is likely to worsen the already dire food insecurity situation in the country, driven by escalating conflict, widespread displacement, severe access restrictions and high food prices.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo has been reintroduced to the hotspot list due to intensifying conflict.
In contrast, Ethiopia, Kenya, Lebanon, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Zambia, and Zimbabwe have been removed from the Hunger Hotspots list. In East and Southern Africa, as well as in Niger, better climatic conditions for harvests and fewer weather extremes have eased food security pressures. Lebanon has also been delisted following reduced intensity of military operations. However, FAO and WFP warn that these gains remain fragile and could reverse quickly if shocks re-emerge.
In multiple hotspots, aid delivery is significantly hampered by restricted humanitarian access due to insecurity, bureaucratic impediments, or physical isolation. At the same time, critical funding shortfalls are forcing reductions in food rations, limiting the reach of life-saving nutrition and agricultural interventions.
The Hunger Hotspots report highlights the importance of continued investments in early humanitarian action. Pre-emptive interventions save lives, reduce food gaps, and protect assets and livelihoods at a significantly lower cost than delayed humanitarian action.
The Hunger Hotspots report is part of a US and EU funded suite of analytical products produced under the Global Network Against Food Crises, to enhance and coordinate the generation and sharing of evidence-based information and analysis for preventing and addressing food crises.
This series also includes the recently published 2025 Global Report on Food Crises, which retroactively looks at the levels of acute food insecurity in 2024, in complement to the Hunger Hotspots which is a forward-looking early warning system that provides decision makers with information for planning and resource allocation.
