NEW YORK : In a joint report, the FAO and WFP confirmed that severe food insecurity is forcing families into extreme survival measures, including skipping meals and selling essential belongings. The agencies underscored that once a region reaches the “emergency” stage, Phase 4 of the international food security classification, hunger becomes life-threatening; and at Phase 5, identified as “disaster/famine,” the risk of widespread death intensifies rapidly.

Children are suffering the most, the report warned, as malnutrition weakens immunity, increases vulnerability to disease, and heightens the risk of mortality. Delayed intervention, it stressed, will only amplify human suffering and raise the long-term cost of recovery.

The report identified four primary drivers behind the worsening hunger crisis. Conflict and violence remain the dominant cause in 14 of the 16 affected regions, displacing families and disrupting food systems. Weak economies, mounting debt burdens, and rising food prices have further strained household resilience. Extreme weather events, such as droughts, floods, and cyclones, linked to the La Niña phenomenon have devastated crops and livelihoods. Meanwhile, declining humanitarian funding has forced aid agencies to reduce food rations and limit life-saving treatment for malnutrition.

Calling for immediate global action, the FAO and WFP urged governments, donors, and partners to mobilize assistance without delay. Their recommendations include scaling up humanitarian support to protect lives and livelihoods, implementing early interventions before crises deepen, and investing in long-term resilience solutions that tackle the root causes of hunger rather than its symptoms.