U.S. commits over $1b to UNICEF, WFP for global humanitarian response

Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) and the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) yesterday warned that acute food insecurity was expected to worsen further for millions of people across 13 countries deemed “hunger hotspots” between June and November 2026.

The latest edition of the Hunger Hotspots report, released twice a year through the Global Network Against Food Crises (GNAFC), identifies Sudan, South Sudan, Yemen and Palestine as the world’s most critical hunger hotspots in terms of severity and magnitude of hunger.

Indeed, Nigeria was added to the list of countries of greatest concern, following projections indicating that populations in Borno State may face catastrophic levels of acute food insecurity (defined as an extreme lack of food/other basic needs, with starvation, death, destitution and extremely critical acute malnutrition levels evident) during the upcoming period covered by the report.

Somalia has also been placed in this category, with populations in the Bay region of Burhakaba District facing a risk of Famine.

Armed conflict and violence remain the primary drivers of acute food insecurity, affecting 12 of the 13 hotspots. These pressures are compounded by economic shocks, severe funding shortfalls and growing risks linked to a forecast El Niño event, which is expected to bring uneven rainfall, droughts, and flooding across countries with already high vulnerability.

The warning comes at a time of unprecedented funding shortfalls for humanitarian response. Funding for food assistance, emergency agricultural assistance and nutrition in food crises has declined by an estimated 59 per cent between 2022 and 2025, returning to levels last seen nearly a decade ago. At the same time, the number of people facing high levels of acute food insecurity in these countries has risen to around 266 million.

‎Meanwhile, the United States has announced more than $1 billion in humanitarian and disaster response assistance to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the World Food Programme (WFP) to support life-saving interventions in over 40 countries facing humanitarian crises.
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A statement issued by the Office of the Spokesperson for the United States State Department explains that the funding package comprises more than $218 million for UNICEF and over $800 million for WFP under newly established global macro awards designed to improve the speed, efficiency and accountability of humanitarian aid delivery.
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According to the State Department, the initiative builds on the December 2025 “Humanitarian Reset” memorandum of understanding between the Trump Administration and the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), which introduced reforms aimed at streamlining humanitarian operations and reducing bureaucratic bottlenecks.
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The statement noted that the reforms had helped to consolidate humanitarian activities under local Humanitarian and Resident Coordinators, improved accountability, reduced administrative waste and redirected more resources to frontline relief efforts.
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The United States government noted that the latest awards represent the second and third in a series of global grants to trusted implementing partners, replacing what it described as a fragmented system of multiple individual grants that often led to duplication, high overhead costs and unpredictable funding flows.