Somalia’s humanitarian crisis worsening due to severe drought, UN warns
(VOVWORLD) - Nearly 6.5 million people in Somalia are facing severe hunger and more than 1.8 million children are at risk of acute malnutrition as the worsening drought intensifies the country’s humanitarian crisis, the United Nations warned on Wednesday.
 Internally displaced Somali women rest in front of their makeshift shelter after fleeing from drought in the Lower Shabelle region to the camp in Mogadishu, Somalia February 20, 2026. (Photo: REUTERS/Feisal Omar) |
The UN's warning followed a report by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), which showed that a third of Somalia's population may face crisis levels of hunger or worse by March, an increase of 1.7 million people since January.
About 2 million individuals are currently experiencing severe hunger and more than 1.8 million children under five will also face acute malnutrition in 2026, with almost half a million of them likely to be severely malnourished.
The drought in Somalia has had a devastating effect on agriculture, with widespread crop and livestock losses in addition to large scale displacements of people.