Nearly Half of Somalia's Youngest Children at Risk of Malnutrition

MOGADISHU (September 24, 2025) – Nearly half of children aged under five in Somalia could face acute malnutrition by July 2026 due to a convergence of crises, as funding cuts reduce health and nutrition services across the country.

Flash flooding, below-average rainfall, high food prices and ongoing conflict have combined to drive hunger levels up 30% across Somalia, with the south worst hit, according to new figures from the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), which monitors global hunger.

IPC estimates that 4.4 million people, or just under a quarter of the population, will experience high levels of acute food insecurity by the end of 2025. This includes over 921,000 people facing emergency levels of food insecurity or Phase 4, the second highest IPC level when urgent action is needed to save lives and livelihoods.

The new data suggests the number of children suffering acute malnutrition between August 2025 and July 2026 could rise to 1.85 million, an increase of 9% from previous forecasts.

Save the Children said this severe deterioration in malnutrition is compounded by cuts in international assistance which have led to reduced access to health and nutrition services, with insufficient vaccination coverage leading to an increase in diseases such as a current diphtheria outbreak.

The closure of nutrition centers and health facilities – including more than a quarter of facilities supported by Save the Children – has left over 55,000 children without access to life-saving nutrition services since June.

Binyam Gebru, Save the Children’s Acting Country Director for Somalia, said: “Somalia is embroiled in a protracted crisis, which is slowly grinding down the resilience of families and the wellbeing of children. Hunger – already at dire levels across Somalia - is on the rise, as extreme weather continues to wreak havoc, but it’s even worse this year because now we are facing massive funding cuts which are already having severe impacts on children.

“We are already seeing more children arriving at our clinics in critical condition, and with fewer facilities open, many will have nowhere to turn. Not providing the funds that can help prevent extreme hunger is a political choice and one that needs to be reversed before it is too late for millions of children in Somalia.”

Save the Children is calling on the international community and donors to urgently mobilize resources to restore and expand nutrition, health, and water services. Without immediate action, the lives of hundreds of thousands of Somali children hang in the balance.

Save the Children has been working in Somalia since 1951, delivering life-saving health, nutrition, education and protection services. In 2024, Save the Children reached 3.2 million people, including 1.9 million children across 17 regions in the country.

Note to Editors:

The IPC Acute Food Insecurity and Malnutrition Analysis for July-December 2025 was released on September 23, 2025. According to IPC, the total number of children under five years in Somalia is 3,856,170. 1.85 million children are estimated to be suffer acute malnutrition between August 2025 and July 2026, an increase of 9% from previous (1.7 million) forecasts.

This rise is attributed to reduced humanitarian funding, ongoing conflict and weather-related shocks, which have worsened access to nutrition, health and WASH services.