Somalia: More than 26,000 people expected to face catastrophic levels of hunger as families reel from extreme weather shocks

More than 26,000 people in Somalia are expected to fall into catastrophic levels of food insecurity in coming months, just one step away from famine, as families already struggling with drought brace for heavy rains and flooding, Save the Children said. New analysis from global hunger monitor, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) warned that thousands of internally displaced children and families in Baidoa in southwest Somalia are at risk of falling into IPC Phase 5 Catastrophe between October and December. Many of these families spent the past year battling drought and are now facing the prospect of floods driven by forecast above-average rainfall. It’s the second such warning this year after the IPC classified the Burhakaba district in the Bay region of southwest Somalia to be facing the risk of famine through June 2026. This was the first such alert in Somalia since the devastating drought of 2022. Across Somalia, 5.4 million people, or about 28% of the population, are expected to face crisis levels of hunger or worse (IPC Phase 3 and above) between October and December. While this represents a slight improvement compared with projections released in May follo