NAIROBI, Kenya – Kenya is staring down a deepening hunger crisis, with 2.8 million people now struggling to access adequate food following poor rainfall and escalating economic strain, according to the 2025 Global Report on Food Crises.
The report, released this week, shows a sharp rise from 1.9 million people in urgent need of assistance in 2024, reversing the brief recovery seen after the devastating drought of 2023.
Northern Kenya, the Rift Valley, and parts of the coast are bearing the brunt of the crisis.
Nearly 291,700 people are now classified under IPC Phase 4—an emergency level of food insecurity just one step below famine.
“The worsening situation is driven by below-average October–December 2024 rains negatively impacting crop and livestock production, elevating food prices, and causing conflicts related to resource management and human-wildlife interactions,” the report notes.
While the country saw some relief in 2024 after above-average rainfall boosted harvests and livestock recovery, the gains were swiftly undone by El Niño-triggered floods between March and May that year.
More than 11,500 livestock were killed, and vast tracts of farmland were damaged, particularly in northern and eastern pastoral areas.
The crisis was compounded by erratic rainfall in other regions, with maize harvests falling 10 to 15 per cent below normal in western and southeastern Kenya.
At the same time, inflation and a weakening shilling pushed up food and non-food prices, further squeezing vulnerable households.
Communities in arid and semi-arid lands are now facing a dangerous convergence of erratic weather, economic shocks, lost livelihoods, and frequent clashes over access to water and pasture.
The report warns that the situation remains precarious and calls for urgent humanitarian and policy action to prevent further deterioration.
