Almost 1.5m faced catastrophic, starvation conditions in 2025 More than 19m people are acutely hungry in Sudan
tion to debate, but an entirely preventable hunger catastrophe that the world is actively choosing to allow. Lives will be lost, economies will be hollowed out, and an entire generation will bear the con- sequences of budget decisions made far from the front lines of hunger. This is not just a humanitarian failure; it is a global security threat. TIME TO TAKE THE LEAD Despite what may seem like insurmount- able odds, the men and women of WFP show up every day to deliver life-saving food – across conflict zones, in climate- affected regions, in places most people would not go. We find solutions to some of the world’s greatest challenges. We open new doors, pioneer new ways of working. We stay and deliver. But courage and ingenuity alone do not feed people. Resources do. No amount of operational excellence – or efficiency – can stretch a shrinking budget indef- initely. And wars will not end because a United Nations executive director begs them to. We cannot feed a starving world on goodwill alone. This is where the G7 must lead – with predictable, multi-year funding that lets organisations like WFP plan ahead rather than scramble, and act early rather than react too late. It means protecting humanitarian workers who put their lives on the line every single day. And it means doing the hard diplomatic work to end these wars because conflict is the reason that so many people are hungry in the first place – and the worst of these con- flicts will not come to an end without the sustained attention of the world’s most influential democracies. Although I have stepped down as the executive director of WFP, I am not step- ping away from this mission. I will remain one of WFP’s biggest advocates, because I have seen what our teams can accomplish when they are given the means to do their work, and I have seen the cost when they are not. My successor will inherit both the crisis and the commitment. Hunger is not inevitable. The choices G7 leaders make in Évian, and in the months that follow, will decide whether millions of people eat or go hungry, whether fragile states hold together or come apart, whether this crisis is con- tained or whether it defines the decade. WFP will keep doing our part. I am asking our G7 partners to do theirs.
// CINDY MCCAIN Cindy Hensley McCain became the World Food Programme’s executive director in 2023. A distinguished humanitarian, business leader and diplomat, she recently announced her decision to step down from the role in June 2026 due to health reasons. Prior to joining WFP, she served as United States ambassa- dor to the United Nations agencies in Rome, and is the former chair of the board of trustees of Arizona State University’s McCain Insti- tute for International Leadership. She has also served on the board of directors of Project C.U.R.E, CARE, Operation Smile and Halo Trust, and was chair of her family’s business, Hensley Beverage Company.
We are living through a period in which hunger crises are becoming more frequent, more severe and more com- plex. Conflict, extreme weather, economic shocks and displacement are combining and reinforcing one another. Emergen- cies that were once short term now last for years. New crises emerge before old ones have had time for people to recover. AN INTENSIFYING CRISIS The Middle East is the latest case. Energy and fertiliser prices have surged. Shipping costs have jumped by 20% or more. Supply chains are under exceptional strain. Analysis by the World Food Programme indicates that, if conditions do not stabi- lise, 45 million more people could fall into severe hunger. This crisis reaches far beyond the Middle East. In Sudan, now suffering three years of brutal civil war, more than 19 million people are acutely hungry. Famine is a confirmed reality in parts of the country. From Haiti to the Sahel, millions more face the same spiral. I have
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visited many of these places, and I have seen first-hand what happens when assis- tance arrives, and what happens when it does not. As global needs soar and resources dramatically decline, funding cuts cost lives. WFP’s global logistics network and supply chain expertise enable us to respond within hours after a crisis strikes. That speed saves lives. However, govern- ments that once led on overseas aid are now pulling back, with devastating con- sequences. Every dollar cut grounds our planes, stops our trucks and empties our warehouses. If this trajectory holds and our opera- tional costs continue to rise, we may be forced to cut critical food assistance for nine million people. This is not a projec-
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