The United Nations' food agencies, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Food Programme (WFP), have launched a joint global appeal seeking $202 million to protect 8.8 million people in 22 high-risk countries from the anticipated impacts of a strong El Niño weather event expected to intensify during 2026 and into 2027.
The first-ever Joint Anticipatory Action Appeal aims to secure early and flexible funding to help vulnerable communities prepare for climate-related shocks before they escalate into humanitarian crises. The agencies warned that stronger El Niño conditions could trigger severe droughts, floods and storms across parts of Africa, Asia-Pacific, and Latin America and the Caribbean, threatening food security, agricultural production and livelihoods.
Priority countries
The appeal focuses on 22 countries, balancing key considerations such as risks based on meteorological forecasts of El Niño and its possible impact, historical weather patterns, agricultural calendars, existing levels of food insecurity and operational readiness. The targeted countries by region are:
Africa: Cameroon, Ethiopia, Kenya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique, Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Uganda and Zimbabwe.
Asia and the Pacific: Afghanistan, Pakistan, Philippines and Timor-Leste.
Latin America and the Caribbean: Colombia, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras and Venezuela.
According to the appeal, El Niño is forecast to strengthen over the coming months, bringing below-average rainfall in some regions and excessive rainfall and flooding in others. These weather extremes could disrupt planting and harvesting cycles, reduce water availability, damage crops and pasturelands, and undermine food production systems.
The warning comes at a time when millions of people are already struggling with acute food insecurity due to conflict, displacement, economic instability and recurrent climate shocks. The agencies also noted that economic disruptions linked to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East are adding pressure to already fragile food systems.
FAO and WFP currently have resources in place to support around 1.2 million people expected to be affected by El Niño. However, they estimate that an additional investment of $167 million would enable them to expand assistance to another 7.6 million people, bringing total coverage to 8.8 million people across the targeted countries.
"Experience consistently shows that early action is more effective and less costly than responding after a crisis has escalated," said FAO Deputy Director-General Beth Bechdol. She emphasized that forecasts, risk assessment tools and evidence-based systems are already available to identify threats before they become emergencies, but timely financing remains critical for effective intervention.
WFP Acting Executive Director Carl Skau warned that the world cannot afford another major food crisis. "With El Niño on the horizon, we have a narrow window to act so families are not forced into impossible choices later," he said, adding that anticipatory action can help keep food on the table, reduce humanitarian needs and lower overall response costs.
The agencies highlighted that anticipatory action has proven both effective and cost-efficient. According to FAO and WFP estimates, every dollar invested in early action can generate up to seven dollars in avoided losses and emergency response costs.
The funding will support a range of locally tailored interventions, including cash assistance, distribution of drought-tolerant and flood-resistant seeds, livestock protection measures, water harvesting and storage systems, flood control infrastructure, agricultural advisories and dissemination of early warning information.
These measures are designed to help vulnerable households protect their livelihoods, maintain food consumption, preserve agricultural production and strengthen resilience against future climate shocks.
FAO and WFP noted that during the 2023-24 El Niño event, the two agencies provided anticipatory assistance to more than three million people months before peak impacts occurred. While preparedness capacities have expanded since then, they said current coverage remains far below projected needs.