These are the 10 hungriest countries in the world in 2026

The world produces enough food to feed all of its inhabitants. Yet an estimated 645 million people went without food for part (or all) of last year. 

Hunger is an issue in every country around the world, but some countries experience it at larger levels of crisis than others. In 2006, Concern Worldwide and our Alliance2015 partner Welthungerhilfe began tracking hunger levels around the world with the Global Hunger Index. Published this year by Welthungerhilfe and fellow Alliance partner Helvetas, along with the Institute for International Law of Peace and Armed Conflict (IFHV), the GHI continues to serve as a vital resource for comparing levels of hunger between countries and regions.

Based on this year’s GHI, these are the 10 hungriest countries in the world in 2026. 

At a glance: Liberia is still feeling the long-term effects of several crises and underdevelopment, which have left 37.3% of the population (and 26.9% of all children) undernourished.

Nearly 14 years of two separate civil wars ended in Liberia in 2003.  More than two decades later, however, the effects of those conflicts are still being felt in terms of the country’s levels of poverty and hunger. The country also faced further crises since then, including the world’s largest Ebola epidemic from 2014 to 2016, and development challenges including a lack of access to clean water, sanitation, and hygiene services. 

As a result, more than 37% of Liberians are undernourished. This includes nearly 27% of children who suffer stunting (low height for age) and 3.8% who are wasted (low weight for height), two forms of acute malnutrition that can be life-threatening if not treated. 

At a glance: Timor-Leste’s GHI score is four times the average for East and Southeast Asia, with nearly 44.9% of children suffering stunting and 18.5% from wasting. 

In the 2026 Global Hunger Index, East and Southeast Asia averaged a regional GHI score of 8.1, against a global score of 18.1. By comparison, the island republic of Timor-Leste (which shares an island with Indonesia) scores 32.5 — an increase of more than five points since 2018. 

One of the biggest nutritional threats is for Timorese children: Nearly 45% of children are stunted, and 18.5% are wasted. These high rates of malnutrition mean that nearly 5% of children born here die before their fifth birthday.

At a glance: 29.8% of people in the Central African Republic are undernourished, while 38.9% of Central African children face stunting and 5.2% suffer from wasting. 

A widespread humanitarian crisis in the Central African Republic left one out of every four people displaced and one-third of the country hungry. While much of that violence has subsided, the effects are long-lasting, particularly around food and nutrition security. 

Between April and August of this year, over 2 million people — nearly one out of every three Central Africans — faced high levels of food insecurity according to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), an increase in numbers compared to 2025.  

Per the 2026 GHI, nearly 30% of the country is undernourished. Almost 40% of children are stunted and 5.2% are wasted, with an estimated 9% of children dying before their fifth birthday. 

At a glance: 12.9% of all people in Niger are undernourished, though the problem is more acute for children: 50.5% suffer from stunting and 11.1% from wasting, contributing to a child mortality rate that’s also 11.1%.  

Niger is a landlocked country predominantly located in the Sahara Desert, leaving only one-eighth of the country’s land suitable for farming. Yet 80% of the country’s workforce relies on agriculture and livestock for their food and livelihoods. 

Last year, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) estimated that 1.6 million Nigerien children (age 5 and under) would suffer from acute malnutrition into the first half of 2026, including 410,000 expected to face severe acute malnutrition. 

The GHI supports this estimate, noting that over 50% of Nigerien children are stunted and 11% are wasted. Of the country’s overall population of roughly 28 million people, nearly 13% are undernourished.

At a glance: An estimated 22.2% of Nigerians are undernourished amid a growing crisis. This includes 39.5% of children stunted and 8.4% wasted. 

Rising insecurity and conflict in Nigeria have led to a growing food crisis in the country, with the IPC estimating nearly 6.4 million children facing acute malnutrition (including 2 million suffering from severe acute malnutrition). 

The 2026 GHI notes that over 22% of Nigerians are undernourished, while over 39% of children are stunted and 8.4% suffering from wasting. These high rates of child malnutrition have contributed to more than 11% of children dying before their fifth birthday.

At a glance: A protracted crisis of violence in Haiti has left 51.4% of the population undernourished, 21.6% of children stunted, and 5% of children wasted. 

A protracted humanitarian crisis in Haiti has left one out of every two Haitians facing emergency levels of hunger for more than two years.

These rising hunger rates are fuelling the country’s crisis of violence, which in turn fuels the high rates of food insecurity. However, this isn’t the only cause of hunger in Haiti: erratic rainfall, rampant inflation, political turmoil, and internal displacement are also key, interrelated factors.

In 2026, this has left over 51% of Haitians undernourished, nearly 22% of children stunted, and 5% wasted.

At a glance: A growing food crisis in Madagascar has left 41.8% of the population undernourished, including 38.4% Malagasy children who are stunted and 7.2% who are wasted.

The island of Madagascar relies heavily on rain-fed agriculture, which is under increasing threat from climate shocks. The southern parts of the country in particular have been affected by both recurrent drought and severe cyclones. 

Last year, 1.2 million people were facing high levels of food insecurity, while the IPC now estimates that 2.12 million are facing the same at the end of 2026. The IPC also estimates that the situation will continue to worsen in 2027. 

In 2026, meanwhile, the GHI reports that nearly 42% of Malagasy are undernourished, while over 38% of children are stunted and more than 7% are wasted.

At a glance: While 33.6% of Chad is undernourished, the effects are felt most acutely among children: 36.7% are stunted and 10.8% are wasted. 

Chad has made progress towards lowering hunger rates in some areas, however child malnutrition continues to be a key issue. This is driven by inadequate food intake, a high prevalence of childhood diseases, poor access to clean water, and high levels of food insecurity (among other factors), and it’s known to spike seasonally between harvests. 

In 2026, over 33% of the country’s overall population was undernourished, while nearly 37% of children were stunted and 11% wasted.

At a glance: The Democratic Republic of the Congo has seen its highest GHI score in 20 years, with 39.5% of the country undernourished, 44.1% of children suffering from stunting, and 7.2% from wasting. 

The Democratic Republic of the Congo has faced decades of crisis which, in the last few years, has included a surge in regional violence in the east and, as of this summer, a deadly Ebola outbreak. This has led to a rising hunger rate, with the country recording its highest GHI score in 20 years. 

Approximately 26.5 million Congolese are facing high levels of hunger, which has left more than 39% of the population undernourished. The youngest Congolese are bearing the brunt of this crisis, with over 44% children stunted and 7% of children wasted.

At a glance: Amid cuts to humanitarian funding and rising climate risks, insecurity, and food prices, a deepening hunger crisis in Somalia has left 56.5% of the population undernourished, including 23.9% of children facing stunting and 14.6% suffering from wasting.

For the third year in a row, Somalia ranks last on the Global Hunger Index, the result of a deepening crisis in the country fuelled by conflict, economic challenges, the climate crisis, and increasing food insecurity. 

The latest IPC reports estimate that 5.1 million people are facing crisis levels of hunger or higher (a 50% increase compared to this time last year), including over 25,000 internally-displaced people at risk of famine. 2026 has been an especially harsh year, with humanitarian funding continuing to decline amid El Niño, insecurity, and high food prices. 

This leaves over 56% of the country undernourished. Nearly 25% of Somali children are stunted, and roughly 15% are suffering from wasting. That leaves one out of every ten children not making it to their fifth birthday. 

From Afghanistan to Yemen, Concern’s Health and Nutrition programmes are designed to address the intersectional causes of hunger and malnutrition in each specific context. In 2000, we played a key role in developing Community Management of Acute Malnutrition (CMAM), which has been recognised by the World Food Programme as the gold standard for treating malnutrition.

Last year alone, Concern reached over 2.9 million people with health and nutrition programmes in nine countries. That work included:

• 85,000 patients treated for malnutrition in Somalia through the Caafimaad program
• 442,000 Rohingya and host community members in Bangladesh reached with integrated health and nutrition support
• $700,000 USD worth of nutrition and pharmaceutical supplies distributed across conflict-affected areas of Sudan
• 970 farmers in Liberia trained on Climate Smart Agriculture
• 445 acres of land restored in Niger to support more farmers and pastoralists

Your support can help us to do even more in the year ahead.

Note: There are many countries where hunger is widespread, but where data is insufficient to properly rank them on the Global Hunger Index. (Learn more about how we measure hunger here.) This year’s GHI was unable to gather sufficient data on Sudan, Burundi, South Sudan, and Yemen, but based on the available information, all countries would likely rank high on this list.