The United Nations World Food Programme said Wednesday that a powerful El Niño could push nearly 49 million additional people into acute hunger [1].
This projection highlights a growing humanitarian crisis as extreme weather patterns threaten the stability of global food supplies. The shift could disproportionately impact the world's most vulnerable populations, specifically those in low-income countries and Southern Africa [2].
The warning, issued on Aug. 5, 2026, suggests that these impacts will persist through the end of 2027 [3]. According to the agency, the strengthening El Niño weather pattern is expected to trigger widespread droughts and crop failures [4]. These environmental disruptions often lead to broken food supply chains and a sharp increase in food insecurity [4].
While most reports cite nearly 49 million people at risk [1], some estimates have been lower, with one report suggesting approximately 36 million people could be affected [5]. Despite this range, the agency said that the global total of people facing acute hunger could rise to about 274 million [1].
Southern Africa remains a primary area of concern due to its susceptibility to rainfall variability [2]. The agency said that the combination of climatic shocks and existing economic vulnerabilities creates a volatile environment for food production. Droughts in these regions typically lead to immediate livestock losses and failed harvests, which leave millions without reliable sources of nutrition [4].
The agency continues to monitor the weather patterns to coordinate emergency responses. The goal is to mitigate the impact on the most vulnerable regions before the peak of the weather phenomenon occurs [5].
“A powerful El Niño could push nearly 49 million additional people into acute hunger.”
The intersection of recurring climatic events like El Niño with existing economic fragility in low-income nations creates a compounding crisis. Because Southern Africa and other vulnerable regions rely heavily on rain-fed agriculture, a single weather cycle can erase years of food security progress, shifting the global humanitarian focus from chronic poverty to acute, emergency survival.
