The World Food Programme (WFP) says that more than 17 million people in Northern Nigeria faces hunger crisis where Borno State is a major victim of the hunger crisis.
The statistics of 17 million people in the nine affected states in northern Nigeria that are facing hunger crisis is over the total population of some countries. Meanwhile, the number went up by almost 2 million since the last count.
Borno State which happens to be among the states affected is the same state where Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) was receiving 500 cholera patients in a single day. It also the same state where Boko Haram hostages were rescued from the Mandara Mountains, and now, over 10,000 people have crossed into what humanitarian agencies classify as catastrophic hunger.
The Northern Nigeria Hunger Crisis in 2026 Is the Worst the Country Has Seen in Nearly a Decade Says the UN
As Northern Nigeria faces hunger crisis, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) has described it as the worst in nearly a decade.
As of the latest Cadre Harmonisé analysis in July 2026, more than 17 million people across nine states in northern Nigeria are experiencing crisis, emergency, or catastrophic levels of acute food insecurity.
This represents an increase of almost two million since the last projections which makes the total number of people suffering food insecurity across the country increased to 36.2 million.
There are some factors really affecting the increase of the Northern Nigeria hunger crisis. The long-standing insurgency by Boko Haram and ISWAP in the Northeast combined with banditry and kidnapping in the Northwest, has displaced millions of farmers where many can no longer access their lands to plant or harvest crops.
Aside that, Nigeria is experiencing a high record of inflation. The removal of fuel subsidies and the devaluation of the Naira have caused the prices of foodstuffs like maize, millet, and rice to increase thereby making food unaffordable for the average family.
Borno State Catastrophic Hunger. 10000 People Are One Step Away From Famine
In Borno State, where insurgent attacks have been increasingly frequent and there is no food assistance for the people, it has resulted to making more than three million people acutely food insecure.
Moreover, more than 750,000 people are in severe hunger conditions, and over 10,000 people are facing catastrophic hunger. While those in catastrophic hunger represent a small share of Borno’s overall food-insecure population, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) noted that this signals that conflict, displacement, and shrinking humanitarian assistance are pushing the crisis into more dangerous territory.
The World Is Cutting Food Aid at the Worst Possible Moment
As the number of people who suffer food insecurity in three northeast states increased to 6.2 million, WFP is able to support 740,000 of these people while the remaining 5.5 million people continues to suffer the hunger crisis without lifesaving food and nutrition assistance.
Final Thoughts Northern Nigeria Faces Hunger Crisis
Nigeria has been battling a jihadist insurgency which is centred in the north-east since 2009 with a resurgence in violence since 2025.
Jihadists have also been expanding into the north-west, which is already facing a separate, overlapping crisis from armed bandit gangs. The WFP said the expanding conflict is forcing more people from farmland, driving displacement, and restricting humanitarian access.
WFP is deeply concerned with how the suspension of food assistance is driving people towards desperate coping strategies where communities have reported cases of individuals joining armed groups in search of food or income.
Should Nigeria be doing more on its own to address this, or is this fundamentally a global funding failure? Tell us what you think.
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