GENEVA, February 21, 2026 – The United Nations World Food Programme has warned that Somalia is facing a rapidly worsening hunger crisis that could escalate into famine without urgent financial support.
Speaking in Geneva, WFP Director of Emergency Preparedness and Response Ross Smith said two consecutive failed rainy seasons, ongoing conflict and mass displacement have pushed millions of people into severe food insecurity.
According to the agency, about 4.4 million people, roughly a quarter of Somalia’s population, are experiencing crisis levels of hunger or worse. Nearly one million of them are facing severe hunger. Almost 2 million children are acutely malnourished, including more than 400,000 suffering from severe acute malnutrition.
The WFP said it may be forced to halt life saving food and nutrition assistance within weeks unless it secures an immediate injection of $95 million. The agency’s current resources could be depleted by April without new funding.
“The situation is deteriorating at an alarming rate,” Smith said. “We are at the cusp of a decisive moment. Without urgent action, we may be unable to reach the most vulnerable in time.”
Funding shortages have already led to significant reductions in assistance. The number of people receiving support has dropped from 2.2 million earlier this year to just over 600,000. Nutrition programmes for pregnant and breastfeeding women and young children have also been sharply scaled back.
Somalia declared a national drought emergency in November following repeated poor rainfall. In the past five months alone, around half a million people have been displaced, further straining humanitarian resources.
The WFP warned that current conditions mirror early warning signs seen before the 2011 famine and the near famine in 2022, which was narrowly avoided through large scale international assistance.
While the agency said it has the operational capacity to respond, it stressed that immediate financial backing is essential to prevent a humanitarian catastrophe, warning that a total withdrawal of aid would have devastating humanitarian, security and economic consequences within Somalia and across the wider region.
