A recent report by the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) has revealed that 40.3 million people across six member states are facing high levels of acute food insecurity in 2026. The report, launched in Nairobi on September 24, 2026, indicates that this figure represents 34 percent of the analysed population in Djibouti, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, and Uganda. IGAD Deputy Executive Secretary Mohamed Abdi Ware emphasized that the scale of the crisis requires a shift from reacting to emergencies towards anticipating and preventing them.
The report attributes the food insecurity crisis to various factors, including conflict, drought, economic shocks, and reduced humanitarian funding. While the number of people facing food insecurity is lower than the 43.3 million recorded in 2025, largely due to improvements in Sudan and Uganda, the situation has worsened in Djibouti, Kenya, Somalia, and South Sudan. Ware stressed that the report should be treated as a call to action rather than simply a record of the region's food crisis, highlighting the need for a proactive approach to address the crisis.
Sudan has been identified as the region's largest food crisis, with 19.5 million people, equivalent to 41 percent of the analysed population, facing high levels of acute food insecurity between February and May 2026. The situation is expected to worsen during the June to September lean season. South Sudan has the highest prevalence, with 55 percent of its population facing acute food insecurity between April and July. The report also notes that escalating conflict in Jonglei, Upper Nile, and Unity states has caused displacement, destroyed livelihoods, and disrupted markets and essential services.
Somalia is experiencing a sharp deterioration in food security, with nearly 6.5 million people, or 33 percent of the population, facing high levels of acute food insecurity between February and March 2026. This represents an increase of 1.9 million people from the 2025 peak. The report links the deterioration to the failure of the October to December 2025 rains, which resulted in the country's lowest cereal production on record. Deteriorating livestock conditions and prolonged drought have further weakened household food and livelihood prospects.
In Kenya's arid and semi-arid lands, 4.1 million people, including nearly 429,500 refugees, faced high levels of acute food insecurity between April and June 2026. The figure was 46 percent higher than the 2025 peak, representing nearly 1.3 million additional people. The report attributes the deterioration mainly to worsening drought following one of the driest October to December rainfall seasons on record across much of northern and eastern Kenya. High staple food prices have also reduced household purchasing power.
The crisis is having a severe impact on children, with more than nine million children aged between six and 59 months requiring treatment for acute malnutrition across the six countries, including 2.3 million suffering from severe acute malnutrition. An estimated 19 million people are also living in forced displacement, comprising nearly 14.5 million internally displaced people and 4.5 million refugees and asylum-seekers. Ware identified five priorities for addressing the crisis, including strengthening early warning and anticipatory action, investing in resilient food systems and livelihoods, and improving data, coordination, and financing.
Ware emphasized the need for greater investment in climate-resilient agriculture, livestock, water infrastructure, and appropriate technologies. He also urged IGAD member states and partners to strengthen regional food supply chains, noting that disruptions around the Strait of Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb had highlighted the need for diversified trade routes. The report warns that the drivers of the crisis are interconnected, with conflict, failed rains, high food and fuel prices, and disruptions to maritime trade putting additional pressure on households.
Key points
- Over 40 million people across six IGAD member states face high levels of acute food insecurity in 2026.
- The crisis is attributed to conflict, drought, economic shocks, and reduced humanitarian funding.
- The report calls for a proactive approach to address the crisis, including strengthening early warning and anticipatory action, investing in resilient food systems, and improving data, coordination, and financing.
