The latest UN Hunger Hotspots report for June to October 2025 brings cautiously positive news. Several African countries in East Africa and Southern Africa are no longer classified as “hotspots” thanks to notable climatic improvements. However, the report warns that future shifts in weather patterns and ongoing drivers of food insecurity could reverse these gains.
- The June to October 2025 UN Hunger Hotspots report highlights improvements in hunger situations in several African countries due to better climatic conditions.
- Countries such as Ethiopia, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Zambia, and Zimbabwe are no longer listed as ‘hotspots.’
- Persistent food insecurity remains a concern despite improvements, attributed to factors like high food prices, below-average rainfall, and economic conditions.
These countries include (Ethiopia, Kenya), Southern Africa (Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Zambia, Zimbabwe), and West Africa’s Niger.
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According to the report, conditions in Ethiopia have improved from the catastrophic 2020-2023 drought and war era, particularly the violent Tigray conflict.
Ethiopia’s hunger outlook
However, alleviation remains tenuous. In Ethiopia, mixed 2025 Belg rains have aided some regions, while others, eastern Amhara, Afar, and far-northern Somalia, have seen below-average precipitation, raising the prospect of poorer agricultural and pastoral harvests throughout the harvest season.
Despite the seasonal increase projected from the forthcoming 2025 crop, the UN report warns of persistent market pressure from restricted supplies and high prices, which means many households continue to have limited food access.
Malawi’s hunger outlook
Malawi‘s acute food insecurity is anticipated to persist owing to record-high maize prices caused by an El Niño-related harvest reduction in 2024 and a weakening national currency.
While a seasonal increase in supply following the 2025 harvest may bring some respite, price pressures are expected to endure despite only a minor rebound in output.
Between October 2024 and March 2025, monitoring revealed that 5.7 million people, or approximately 28% of the population, experienced acute food insecurity.
Mozambique’s hunger outlook
Similarly, food insecurity is likely to remain a severe problem in Mozambique, principally caused by continuing armed violence in Cabo Delgado, which continues to disrupt livelihoods, impede agricultural productivity, and generate extremely high access limitations.
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The report did not warn of a feeble outlook for other countries with improved hunger situations.
The report also shows that people in Sudan, Palestine, South Sudan, Haiti, and Mali are experiencing famine, famine danger, or catastrophic levels of acute food insecurity as a result of ongoing or escalating war, economic shocks, and natural disasters, making these countries hotspots of utmost concern.
