GENEVA — The U.N. World Food Programme warned on Friday that its life-saving food and nutrition assistance in Somalia could grind to a halt by April unless new funding is secured, putting millions of people at risk of worsening hunger.
An estimated 4.4 million people face crisis-level food insecurity, with nearly one million of them experiencing severe hunger, due to the impact of failed rainy seasons, conflict and declining humanitarian funding, the WFP said.
‘Deteriorating at an alarming rate’
“The situation is deteriorating at an alarming rate,” said Ross Smith, WFP director of emergency preparedness and response. “Families have lost everything, and many are already being pushed to the brink. Without immediate emergency food support, conditions will worsen quickly.”
Somalia declared a national drought emergency in November after recurrent seasons of poor rainfall, with other countries in the region also affected by the dry conditions.
Sharp reduction in assistance
The WFP, the largest humanitarian agency operating in Somalia, said it has already scaled back assistance dramatically—from 2.2 million people earlier this year to just over 600,000 currently—due to funding shortages.
Nutrition programmes targeting pregnant and breastfeeding women and young children have also been sharply reduced, leaving the most vulnerable populations without critical support.
Echoes of 2022 famine crisis
The agency said it faces a critical moment similar to 2022, when famine was narrowly averted following large-scale international support. To sustain operations between March and August, the WFP is seeking $95 million in urgent funding.
“If our already reduced assistance ends, the humanitarian, security, and economic consequences will be devastating, with the effects felt far beyond Somalia’s borders,” Smith warned.
Regional implications
The funding crisis in Somalia reflects broader challenges facing humanitarian operations across the Horn of Africa, where climate shocks, conflict and economic pressures have combined to create one of the world’s most severe food insecurity crises.
Without immediate intervention, aid agencies warn that Somalia could slip back toward the famine conditions that the country has narrowly avoided in recent years through sustained international support.
Reporting by Olivia Le Poidevin and Kirsti Knolle; Editing by Linda Pasquini and Helen Popper
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