Child Hunger, Malnutrition and Global Food Crises
Tens of millions of children are living in severe food insecurity or severe food poverty, their diets limited and lacking in the nutrients they need during early childhood and beyond for healthy growth and development. Learn key facts about child hunger in the world and how UNICEF responds to food crises and fights severe child malnutrition worldwide.
Over 295 million people across 53 countries face high levels of acute food insecurity. Millions more face severe food poverty.
Conflict is fueling food crises in Gaza, Somalia, Sudan, Myanmar, Yemen and many other places. Economic shocks like inflation and currency devaluation and weather extremes such as droughts and floods are also major contributors.
For children, food crises can mean limited diets lacking the nutrition required for healthy growth and development. The result: child malnutrition. Tens of millions of children under age 5 suffer from acute malnutrition across more than two dozen countries and territories.
Hunger shocks are likely to persist amid significant reductions in humanitarian funding.
Child hunger, food crises and nutrition crises often overlap
A 2025 report by the Global Network Against Food Crises — of which UNICEF is a part — estimated that there were 37.7 million children with acute malnutrition in 26 countries and territories in 2024. Of those, over 10 million suffer from severe acute malnutrition (SAM), which can be fatal if left untreated.
UNICEF procures 75 to 80 percent of the world's supply of ready-to-use therapeutic food, a treatment for children with SAM.
Malnourished Children: How UNICEF Fights Child Hunger
Undernutrition is linked to nearly half of all deaths of children under age 5
Some 148 million children in the world — about 1 in 5 — are chronically malnourished to some degree. A child who suffers from malnutrition is at greater risk of dying from common infections; malnutrition increases the frequency and severity of such infections and delays recovery. When not addressed, malnutrition can cause irreversible damage — robbing a child of the opportunity to reach their full mental and physical potential.
Learn more about symptoms of malnutrition in children
Food crises and the threat of famine can also cause displacement, which disrupts lives and interrupts childhoods. Millions of people have been displaced by food crises in recent years.
How UNICEF fights child malnutrition worldwide
UNICEF works with partners to deliver humanitarian assistance to those impacted by food crises through a range of interventions, including:
- screening and treating children for malnutrition
- providing safe water, sanitation and hygiene services to communities where these basic resources are in short supply
- providing cash assistance to families along with nutrition counseling
UNICEF leads the global nutrition emergency preparedness and response efforts, coordinating with partners to reach the most vulnerable children and families in the hardest-to-reach areas. UNICEF also works with governments to strengthen local health and nutrition systems to reduce risks of malnutrition before, during and after a crisis.
Related: UNICEF's Child Nutrition Fund aims to accelerate the global response to the malnutrition crisis
UNICEF’s goal is to protect and promote diets, services and practices for the early prevention, detection and treatment of child wasting — an extreme form of malnutrition. Learn more about UNICEF's nutrition programs.
A donation of $60 can provide a two-month supply of ready-to-use therapeutic food — enough to bring a severely malnourished child back to health.
Frequently asked questions about child hunger
What causes child hunger?
Child hunger can increase when conflict, displacement, economic shocks and weather extremes disrupt children’s access to nutritious food and essential services. UNICEF works with governments and partners to prevent, identify and treat malnutrition while strengthening nutrition systems before, during and after emergencies.
What do child hunger statistics around the world measure?
Child hunger statistics around the world may track acute food insecurity, severe food poverty, wasting, stunting and severe malnutrition. These measures describe different conditions, but together they help UNICEF and its partners identify needs, plan emergency responses and reach at-risk children with appropriate nutrition support.
How does UNICEF help starving babies and malnourished children?
UNICEF supports the screening and treatment of children for malnutrition, supplies ready-to-use therapeutic food and helps strengthen health and nutrition services in communities affected by food crises, including famine. Starving babies and young children are especially vulnerable to the effects of malnutrition, so early identification and treatment are central to UNICEF’s emergency nutrition response.
Can I address child hunger by supporting UNICEF’s work?
Donations to UNICEF USA can help support UNICEF’s broader nutrition and emergency-response work for children and families. Supporters can also advocate for sustained humanitarian assistance and share reliable UNICEF information about global food crises and starving kids around the world.
