More than 256,000 people in Djibouti—approximately 25% of the country's population—are expected to face crisis or emergency level hunger in the coming months, according to a report released on Friday, July 17th, 2026, by a UN-backed global food monitoring network.

The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) index highlighted an urgent need for action to reduce consumption deficits and vulnerability, and to strengthen the resilience of affected households to prevent worsening food insecurity.

The report noted a significant increase in hunger levels compared to the May to June period. Most of those affected are refugees residing in the Ali Addeh and Holl-Holl camps, where nearly 70% of the population—over 21,000 people—are classified at crisis level or above.

Djibouti, a Horn of Africa nation with a population of about one million, faces multiple challenges impacting food security over the next six months:

  • Climate hazards: Looming El Niño conditions are expected to bring irregular seasonal rains, extreme temperature rises, and droughts, leading to drying water points and loss of pastures, severely reducing agricultural and pastoral productivity.
  • High food prices: Disruptions to regional trade flows and geopolitical tensions around the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait are increasing food import costs, disrupting supply chains, and limiting product availability in local markets.
  • Economic shocks: Inflation is diminishing the purchasing power of rural and peri-urban households, restricting food access, raising production costs, and slowing national economic growth.

The IPC, established during the 2004 famine in Somalia, is a network of humanitarian organizations that standardizes the measurement of food security and nutrition worldwide.

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