MOGADISHU (Kaab TV) – The World Food Programme (WFP) has warned that its life-saving assistance programs, which support millions of people, could be forced to halt in the coming weeks unless urgent funding is secured to continue emergency food and nutrition aid in Somalia.
A senior WFP official, Ross Smith, Director of Emergency Preparedness and Response, stated that nearly two million children in Somalia are suffering from severe malnutrition.
He noted that the country is facing one of the most severe hunger crises in recent years, driven by two consecutive failed rainy seasons, escalating conflict, and a sharp decline in humanitarian funding.
According to Smith, the current funding shortfall has forced WFP to significantly reduce the number of people receiving emergency food assistance.
The number of beneficiaries, which stood at 2.2 million people at the beginning of 2025, has now dropped to just over 600,000 — meaning that only one in seven people in need is currently receiving life-saving support.
Nutrition programs for pregnant and breastfeeding women, as well as children, have also been drastically scaled back. The number of beneficiaries fell from 400,000 in October 2025 to just 90,000 in December.
The official warned that the situation is rapidly deteriorating, with many families losing their livelihoods and being pushed closer to famine-like conditions.
Finally, the agency stated that it urgently requires $95 million to continue supporting the most vulnerable people between March and August 2026. It cautioned that without this funding, its humanitarian operations in Somalia could come to a halt as early as April.