Global childhood hunger rose significantly in 2024, with 18.2 million children born into food insecurity, according to a new Save the Children analysis of U.N. data.
The figure represents approximately 35 children per minute and marks a 5% increase from 2023.
The total is 19% higher than the 15.3 million recorded in 2019 when progress on reducing childhood hunger began to stagnate.
Conflict zones, displacement, and extreme weather have contributed to declining child nutrition worldwide.
Countries facing the risk of famine or catastrophic food insecurity include South Sudan, Haiti, Mali and Sudan, where famine-level malnutrition affects half of the country’s 18 states.
The Democratic Republic of Congo reported the highest number of undernourished newborns at 1.6 million among nations where at least 20% of the population faces hunger.
Pakistan, one of the world’s most climate-vulnerable countries, recorded 1.4 million babies born into hunger.
“Hunger knows no boundaries. It erodes childhoods, drains children’s energy and risks robbing them of their futures,” said Hannah Stephenson, Global Head of Hunger and Nutrition at Save the Children.
In Pakistan’s Baluchistan province, 28-year-old Uzma struggles to feed her five children on her husband’s small shop income.
Her 17-month-old daughter is malnourished, and she recently gave birth to twins.
“Sometimes, our older boys don’t get as much food as they need or the most nutritious meals,” Uzma told aid workers.
“As a mother, it hurts deeply to see my children go without.”
Madagascar, despite its smaller population, reported approximately 400,000 babies born into hunger.
Local mother Genie described feeding her six-month-old daughter Aina only twice daily due to financial constraints.
The organisation urges world leaders to address root causes of food insecurity by reducing conflicts, addressing climate change, and strengthening health and nutrition systems.
They also call for increased investment in early response planning to prevent predictable emergencies from escalating into crises.
A separate November warning indicated potential famine conditions in northern Gaza, with 345,000 people across the region at risk of catastrophic hunger in coming months, according to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification.
Note: Some names have been changed to protect privacy
