Bangladesh among countries accounting for two-thirds of global hunger, UN report shows

The report forecasts high food insecurity levels in 2026 despite easing inflation

The TCB truck has run out of stock, but customers keep reaching for it in the desperate hope of buying necessities at a subsidised price. Photo: Abdullah al Momin

The food crisis across the world has reached alarming levels. A report released by some agencies of the United Nations (UN), the European Union (EU), and other partners on Friday shows a stark 266 million people across 47 countries experiencing high levels of acute food insecurity in 2025.

The figure is nearly one-quarter of the population analysed and almost twice the proportion recorded in 2016, UN News reported.

The report, titled “2026 Global Report on Food Crises”, placed Bangladesh among the top 10 countries that account for two-thirds of all people facing high levels of acute food insecurity.

However, it also said improvements in acute food insecurity were observed in Bangladesh, but these gains were largely offset by worsening conditions in several other countries since 2024.

Highlighting that hunger has become part of the structure rather than a short-term issue, UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Director-General Qu Dongyu was reported as saying: “Acute food insecurity today is not just widespread – it is also persistent and recurring.”

Conflict, displacement, and lack of funding are among the key reasons driving the food crises.

Despite improvements in Bangladesh’s food security, driven by the absence of major disasters in early 2025, the report noted worsening acute food insecurity in South Asia due to lower food inflation and increased remittance inflows.

Conditions deteriorated among forcibly displaced Myanmar nationals in two districts of Bangladesh due to the recent influx of Rohingya refugees, flooding, and reduced humanitarian assistance, it added.

Bangladesh also recorded the largest decrease, with 1.3 million fewer people facing emergency levels of acute hunger, termed IPC Phase 4 in the report, while 15 million people still face high levels of acute food insecurity.

The report said acute food insecurity is expected to remain high into 2026 in the country due to weather extremes and economic pressures, as heavy rains and flooding caused localised crop losses, although inflation is projected to ease to around 8.7 percent.

It marks a strong link between displacement and acute food insecurity, and Bangladesh is among the most affected countries.

It hosts large displaced populations, including nearly 5 million internally displaced people as of 2025 due to floods and cyclones, alongside pressures from the recent influx of Rohingya refugees.

Bangladesh faced a moderate nutrition crisis, the report said, caused by lower levels of acute malnutrition or a relatively stronger state capacity to prevent further deterioration.

The UN News reported UN High Commissioner for Refugees Barham Salih as saying, “Forced displacement and food insecurity are deeply interconnected, forming a vicious cycle.”

The report says ongoing conflicts, climate shocks and economic instability will keep food insecurity high in 2026, with additional risks from global market disruptions, including the Middle East crisis, potentially driving up food prices and straining supply chains.

Aid agencies warn that without a shift in approach, hunger risks becoming a persistent feature of global instability.