Saving Lives
Changing Lives

The world faces a global hunger crisis of unprecedented proportions.

In just two years, the number of people facing, or at risk of, acute food insecurity increased from 135 million in 53 countries pre-pandemic, to 345 million in 79 countries in 2023.

Fuelled by conflict, climate shocks and COVID-19, the crisis is escalating as the war in Ukraine drives up the costs of food, fuel and fertilizers. Millions of people are struggling to put food on the table and are being driven closer to starvation in a storm of staggering proportions.

We are at a critical crossroads. We need to rise to the challenge of meeting people's immediate food needs, while at the same time supporting programmes that build long-term resilience . The alternative is hunger on a catastrophic scale.

WFP is prioritizing emergency action to prevent millions dying of hunger and help build and stabilize national food systems and related supply chains. We aim to support a record 171.5 million people in 2023, a significant increase on 128 million in 2021. We are diversifying our supplier base, promoting local food procurement and negotiating for humanitarian access and export waivers.

Our operational needs are now at an all-time high of US$25.1 billion, with forecasted contributions of US$10 billion (or 40 percent).

WFP has a plan for 2023 – the most ambitious in its history – but needs renewed and larger commitments to help deliver millions of people from disaster. We face a triple jeopardy: operational costs increase, the number of acutely hungry people rises to unprecedented levels and donors are squeezed by multiple demands. Without additional resources, WFP will be forced to continue drastic prioritization in many of the countries where we operate, including among humanitarian crises.

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