Overview
- The UN World Food Programme projects that, if hostilities persist through June and oil stays above $100 a barrel, about 45 million more people would face acute hunger, lifting the global total to roughly 363–364 million.
- WFP reports logistics strains since late February, with shipping costs up about 18 percent, longer rerouting of vessels, and tens of thousands of trucks paying more for fuel.
- Detours around the Strait of Hormuz and Red Sea are slowing deliveries, with Sudan-bound cargo now routed around the Cape of Good Hope, adding roughly 9,000 kilometers and doubling transit times.
- Disrupted fertilizer flows threaten upcoming planting in sub‑Saharan Africa, while import‑reliant regions face the steepest projected increases: East and Southern Africa ~17.7 million, West and Central Africa ~10.4 million, Asia ~9.1 million.
- Funding shortfalls have already forced WFP to cut rations in Sudan and limit treatment in Afghanistan, as UN leaders press for a ceasefire and protection of humanitarian access.