Global hunger declines for third year but regional gaps persist, UN report says
11 reported
A United Nations report released Tuesday estimates that 7.8 percent of the global population faced hunger in 2025, down from 8.1 percent in 2024 and 8.6 percent in 2022, marking a third consecutive year of decline. The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2026 report, produced by five UN agencies, states that around 645 million people were affected by hunger in 2025, a reduction of nearly 14 million from 2024 and 43 million from 2022. Despite this progress, the report warns that improvements remain fragile and uneven, with Africa now home to approximately 309 million hungry people compared with 292 million in Asia. Broader measures show that 25.8 percent of the global population experienced moderate or severe food insecurity in 2025, down from 27.1 percent in 2024, though still above pre-pandemic levels. The report also notes that the average global cost of a healthy diet rose to 4.28 purchasing power parity dollars per person per day in 2025, up from 3.44 PPP dollars in 2021, while the number of people unable to afford a healthy diet declined to 2.69 billion. The authors warn that the 2026 Middle East conflict, weather extremes, and reductions in official development assistance and humanitarian funding threaten to undermine progress.
What’s reported
Global hunger affected 7.8 percent of the population in 2025, down from 8.1 percent in 2024 and 8.6 percent in 2022.
Approximately 645 million people faced hunger in 2025, a reduction of nearly 14 million from 2024 and 43 million from 2022.
Africa is home to about 309 million hungry people, compared with 292 million in Asia.
25.8 percent of the global population (around 2.1 billion people) experienced moderate or severe food insecurity in 2025, down from 27.1 percent in 2024.
More than half of Africa’s population (56.6 percent) faced moderate or severe food insecurity in 2025.
The average global cost of a healthy diet rose to 4.28 PPP dollars per person per day in 2025, up from 3.44 PPP dollars in 2021.
2.69 billion people (32.7 percent of the global population) were unable to afford a healthy diet in 2025, down from 2.97 billion in 2021.
In Africa, 66.6 percent of the population could not afford a healthy diet in 2025.
The report projects 510 to 520 million people may still face hunger in 2030 depending on the Middle East conflict’s impact on food inflation.
Adult obesity prevalence rose from 12.1 percent in 2012 to 16.2 percent in 2024.
150 million children under five years of age are still stunted.
Key figures
QU Dongyu, FAO Director-General
Alvaro Lario, IFAD President
Catherine Russell, UNICEF Executive Director
Carl Skau, WFP Acting Executive Director
Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General
Sources: World Health Organization
