Overview

• Global hunger rate fell to 8.2% in 2024, equating to 673 million people—the first modest decline since the pandemic surge.
• Despite this global improvement, hunger prevalence in Africa exceeded 20% and reached 12.7% in Western Asia last year.
• A separate report found 295 million people across 53 countries faced acute hunger in 2024, including 1.9 million in catastrophic conditions.
• FAO chief economist Máximo Torero identifies conflicts, extreme weather and economic slowdown as primary drivers of worsening regional food crises.
• UN agencies project that chronic undernutrition could afflict up to 512 million people by 2030, with nearly 60% concentrated in Africa.