A sharp escalation in militant attacks across northern Nigeria is pushing hunger to unprecedented levels and is projected to drive the continent’s worst food insecurity in 2026, according to a new World Food Programme (WFP) assessment released Tuesday.
The UN agency warns that 35 million Nigerians could face severe hunger by next year, the highest figure ever recorded by the WFP in the country and the largest projected caseload in Africa.
The report further indicates that at least 15,000 people in Borno State the epicenter of Nigeria’s long-running insurgency are expected to face catastrophic hunger, including famine-like conditions. Borno is set to enter Phase 5, the WFP’s most extreme level of food insecurity, comparable to crises currently unfolding in parts of Gaza and Sudan.
“Northern Nigeria is experiencing the most severe hunger crisis in a decade, with rural farming communities the hardest hit,” the agency said.
Officials attribute the deepening crisis to persistent attacks by armed groups, which have forced many farmers to abandon their land. The threat environment expanded in October when al-Qaeda-linked Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin conducted its first attack inside Nigeria.
The surge in violence has also fueled mass kidnappings. On November 21, more than 300 students and 12 teachers were abducted from a school in Niger State, just days after 25 schoolchildren were taken in neighboring Kebbi State.
Compounding the crisis, Nigeria is among the countries most affected by the significant reduction in UN food assistance following U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision to halt funding for USAID. The cuts ended financial support to the WFP, which now warns it will exhaust its resources for emergency food and nutrition programs in December. In July, food aid was suspended across West and Central Africa.
“Without confirmed funding, millions will be left without support in 2026, fueling instability and deepening a crisis that the world cannot afford to ignore,” the agency cautioned.
