Global hunger numbers decline slightly

Approximately 645 million people suffered from hunger worldwide in 2025, representing a decrease of nearly 14 million people in one year, according to a press release by the United Nations published on October 16, 2026, on the occasion of World Food Day.

Acute hunger worsens despite overall improvement

This overall improvement in the hunger situation, however, masks a worsening of acute hunger, a severe food deprivation that occurs or worsens rapidly and threatens the health, livelihoods, or even the lives of those affected, according to the non-governmental organization Action Against Hunger.

Three nations bear a large share of acute hunger

Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), and Sudan account for 82.9 million people suffering from acute hunger, or nearly one-third of the 266 million people affected worldwide, according to a report published by the organization ahead of World Food Day.

Report highlights growing crisis in specific countries

Titled The 10 Largest Global Food Crises, this document reveals that the number of people facing acute hunger has doubled over the last ten years, concentrating increasingly in a small number of nations.

Most acute hunger cases are in ten countries

Approximately two-thirds of the people facing acute hunger, or 177 million individuals, live in 10 countries: Nigeria, the DRC, Sudan, Yemen, Afghanistan, Myanmar, Bangladesh, Pakistan, South Sudan, and Syria, according to the press release announcing the report.

Armed conflict is a major cause of the crisis

For Action Against Hunger, armed conflicts remain one of the main factors contributing to the crisis.