DR Congo faces record hunger as conflict and disease outbreaks deepen crisis
UN agencies warn that a record 30.3 million people in the Democratic Republic of the Congo are projected to face acute food insecurity between January and June 2027. Conflict, displacement, rising food prices and disease outbreaks including Ebola are driving the crisis.
A record 30.3 million people in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) are projected to face Crisis levels of acute food insecurity or worse between January and June 2027. The figure comes from the latest Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) analysis, cited by the UN World Food Programme (WFP), the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), UNICEF and the World Health Organization (WHO). The agencies warn that humanitarian assistance is falling dangerously behind growing needs.
The numbers
From September to December 2026, nearly 29 million people, almost a quarter of the population, face Crisis or worse levels of hunger (IPC Phase 3 or above). Among them, 3.6 million are in Emergency (IPC Phase 4). By early 2027 the Emergency figure is projected to rise by nearly 600,000 to 4.2 million. For comparison, 26.5 million people were in Crisis or worse between January and June 2026.
Eastern DRC has the most urgent needs. More than 11 million people in North Kivu, South Kivu and Ituri provinces are projected to face Crisis or worse in the first half of 2027. Nine territories are expected to reach Emergency: Djugu in Ituri; Lubero, Masisi and Oïcha in North Kivu; and Fizi, Kalehe, Mwenga, Shabunda and Walungu in South Kivu. Significant shares of the population in Tanganyika, Maniema, Kasaï, Haut-Lomami, Lomami, Kwango and Haut-Uele also face Crisis or worse.
Causes
The agencies point to armed conflict and repeated displacement, lost assets, restricted access to land, disrupted markets and high prices. The IPC analysis also names crises in the Middle East, the Red Sea and Ukraine as adding pressure. Ebola, cholera, mpox and other outbreaks disrupt farming, restrict movement and raise household costs. Children under five face the greatest risk from acute malnutrition.
Call for action
FAO's Rein Paulsen said that if farmers receive seeds and tools before planting begins in early 2027, they can harvest by mid-year. The agencies call for urgent financing, protection of civilians and safe, unimpeded humanitarian access.
