The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) warns today that millions in Somalia are at risk of worsening hunger and malnutrition as critical funding shortfalls have forced the agency to reduce the number of people it supports with lifesaving emergency food assistance in Somalia by over two-thirds.
In November, WFP says it will have to reduce the number of people who receive emergency food assistance to just 350,000 people, down from 1.1 million in August. This means that WFP will be supporting less than 1 in every 10 people who are in need of food assistance for survival.
Malnutrition also remains alarmingly high, with 1.8 million children under five acutely malnourished and 421,000 suffering from severe malnutrition. WFP’s nutrition programmes are also facing reductions with just 180,000 children still receiving nutrition treatment.