Armed conflicts: the main obstacle to eradicating hunger by GHI 2025

The world has moved further away from the goal of Zero Hunger by 2030 as a result of insufficient collective action, according to the latest edition of the 2025 Global Hunger Index (GHI). The report, released in Spanish by Ayuda en Acción, was produced by the NGOs Welthungerhilfe, Concern Worldwide, and the Institute for International Law of Peace and Armed Conflict (IFHV), organizations that are part of Alliance2015. This new edition evaluates 20 years of trackin hunger, underscoring the need to recommit to global efforts to ensure food security, reduce malnutrition, and move toward a more sustainable future.

With an overall score of 18.3 out of 100 in 2025, the GHI shows that hunger continues to affect millions of people and has barely decreased from 19.0 in 2016. This stagnation highlights how armed conflicts, climate crises, and economic fragility, combined with limited political action, hinder progress toward the Zero Hunger goal for 2030.

In this context, conflicts rremain the main driver of global hunger. In the last year alone, armed violence has caused 20 food crises affecting nearly 140 million people. Food insecurity at the level of global famine, largely concentrated in the wars in Gaza and Sudan, more than doubled between 2023 and 2024, reaching 2 million people in famine conditions.

Fragile progress as hunger grows

The report says that if the current pace continues, the world will not reach a low level of hunger (less than 9.9 points according to the GHI) before 2137, more than a century after the deadline set by the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This critical outlook is reflected in at least 56 countries, as they will not succeed in reducing hunger to low levels by the expected deadline.

In addition, since 2016, hunger has increased in 27 countries, while in 7 of them—Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Haiti, Madagascar, Somalia, South Sudan, and Yemen—the situation is considered alarming (more than 50 points). On the other hand, the limited availability of data in conflict-ridden regions such as Sudan, Gaza, and North Korea makes it difficult to accurately assess the extent of the problem, although the evidence points to a progressive worsening.

Despite global stagnation, some countries such as Mozambique, Rwanda, and Togo have made significant progress thanks to sustained and targeted policies. However, the report warns that this progress remains fragile, highlighting the need to maintain constant commitment, implement coordinated strategies, and ensure the continuity of effective policies to consolidate achievements and move closer to the Zero Hunger goalo.

Lack of humanitarian funding worsens the crisis

The reduction in humanitarian funding, coupled with increased military spending, is worsening the global food crisis, leaving millions of people without access to basic aid and deepening inequality gaps. However, the GHI emphasizes that the situation can be reversed through coordinated and sustained action, where authority, accountability, and responsibility are complemented by political will and shared leadership, thereby generating large-scale positive impact and making tangible progress towards the eradication of hunger.

In this regard, Ayuda en Acción stresses the urgent need to increase international funding and strengthen coordinated cooperation so that assistance effectively reaches those who need it most, ensuring the protection, development, and well-being of children and young people, and contributing tangibly to progress toward the eradication of hunger. The organization also highlights the need to complement immediate aid with long-term strategies that strengthen the resilience of affected communities and ensure access to education and health care.

Five priorities to transform the food system and move towards Zero Hunger

The report highlights the importance of leaving no one behind in the fight against hunger and identifies a series of recommendations to reverse the current trend and implement urgent, coordinated, and sustained measures that strengthen food security, reduce malnutrition, and promote the development and well-being of the most vulnerable communities.

1. Political leadership and sustainable transformation. Governments must make a firm commitment to building inclusive, resilient, and sustainable food systems.


2. Sustainable and climate-resilient agriculture. Long-term food security requires investment in climate-adapted agriculture that leverages appropriate technologies and local knowledge, respects land and water rights, and promotes ecosystem restoration.


3. Financing the fight against hunger. Adequate, predictable, and flexible financing must be secured, combining humanitarian, development, and climate resources with domestic and private financing.


4. Institutional accountability and local governance. Heads of state must take an active role, appointing specific officials to monitor progress. In addition, inclusive accountability mechanisms must be established, and local authorities must be provided with the resources and capacities to implement solutions tailored to each territory.


5. Breaking the cycle between conflict and hunger. Preventing and mitigating the effects of conflict on food systems must be a priority, as must the full implementation of international law.