UN Report Shows Africa Now Has World’s Largest Hungry Population

Africa has become the continent with the highest number of people facing hunger for the first time, according to a new report released by the United Nations, highlighting worsening food insecurity across the region despite gradual global progress in reducing hunger.

The annual State of Food Security and Nutrition report, compiled by the Food and Agriculture Organization and four other UN agencies, estimates that about 309 million people in Africa, representing 20 per cent of the continent’s population, experienced hunger in 2025.

The report shows that Asia now ranks second, with 292 million people affected, representing about six per cent of its population.

FAO Director of Agrifood Economics, David Laborde, said the global centre of hunger has shifted from Asia to Africa, noting that countries such as China have made remarkable progress in reducing hunger, while India continues to implement measures to improve food security.

Globally, the proportion of people facing hunger declined from 8.6 per cent in 2022 to 7.8 per cent in 2025, reducing the number of undernourished people by 43 million to an estimated 645 million. However, the figure remains above pre COVID 19 levels.

The report also revealed that the prevalence of undernourishment in Africa has continued to rise since 2017, although preliminary estimates indicate signs of improvement in 2025.

It further noted that about two thirds of Africans, representing 66.6 per cent of the population, cannot afford a healthy diet, more than double the proportion recorded in Asia.

The UN urged African governments to prioritise reforms in the livestock and animal source food sector, which remains the most expensive food group across the continent.

According to the report, climate related disasters and armed conflicts have significantly worsened food insecurity, particularly in countries such as Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo, where millions have been displaced from their homes and farmland.

The United Nations warned that the ongoing conflict in Sudan has placed about 20 million people at risk of acute food insecurity, while prolonged instability in the Middle East could further worsen global hunger through rising energy and fertiliser costs.