Six Million Somalis Face Acute Hunger as WFP Launches New Five-Year Plan

GOOBJOOG NEWS|MOGADISHU: Six million people in Somalia, about one-third of the population, are facing acute hunger or worse as drought, conflict, displacement, rising food and fuel prices and declining humanitarian assistance deepen the country’s food crisis, the World Food Programme (WFP) has warned.
Nearly two million people are experiencing Emergency levels of hunger, leaving vulnerable families increasingly unable to meet their basic food needs as successive shocks erode livelihoods and household coping mechanisms.
Children are particularly at risk, with an estimated 1.88 million children under the age of five projected to suffer acute malnutrition in 2026. Of these, nearly 493,000 are expected to require treatment for severe acute malnutrition.
Somalia remains one of the world’s worst malnutrition crises, while WFP says its lifesaving nutrition services have become extremely limited. Preventive nutrition programmes have been cut across the country, further increasing risks for vulnerable children and women.
The worsening conditions come as humanitarian agencies struggle with sharply reduced funding at a time when drought, insecurity and displacement continue to drive humanitarian needs.
WFP has now launched its Somalia Country Strategic Plan for 2026-2030, a five-year framework aimed at responding to immediate humanitarian needs while strengthening the country’s capacity to address the underlying causes of hunger.
The strategy focuses on saving lives, strengthening self-reliance, enabling government-led solutions and supporting humanitarian partners operating in Somalia.
Aligned with Somalia’s national priorities, the plan also seeks to strengthen food security and resilience and develop sustainable pathways that could reduce long-term dependence on humanitarian assistance.
The new strategy comes at a critical point for Somalia, with humanitarian agencies warning that declining assistance is coinciding with rapidly worsening needs, potentially leaving millions of vulnerable people without sufficient support.