On World Food Day, We Must Take Real Action on Global Malnutrition Crises

Save the Children Renews Call for Global Food Security Strategy  

FAIRFIELD, Conn. (Oct. 16, 2026) — This World Food Day, Save the Children is calling for renewed action to ensure every child has access to the food and nutrition they need to survive, learn and thrive. Whether they face acute malnutrition in a humanitarian crisis or rely on nutrition programs here in the United States, children need consistent access to healthy food to reach their full potential.

As more than 43 million children across the globe suffer from severe malnutrition,^[1] Save Children is also reiterating its call for the U. S. government to release its overdue Global Food Security Strategy.

The Global Food Security Act requires a new Global Food Security Strategy every four years. The strategy due in 2026 is yet to be released. At a time when hunger is worsening in many parts of the world and a “Super” El Niño is expected to worsen hunger and malnutrition in many parts of the world, the strategy can help guide U.S. efforts to identify emerging crises and support early and effective action – before children face serious health complications.  

In an op-ed published by The Hill earlier this month, Save the Children President and CEO Janti Soeripto wrote: “The new Global Food Security Strategy should be built on a clear picture of where hunger is worsening, who is most vulnerable and which interventions stop a crisis before it becomes a catastrophe. It should treat early warning, early financing and early action as inseparable, strengthening tools like the Famine Early Warning Systems Network with better technology, nutrition data and information from frontline workers and communities.”

This year’s El Niño weather event – predicted to be one of the strongest in decades – is expected to deepen hunger and malnutrition further, because of dangerous droughts, crop failures, flooding and livestock losses.

Children in Somalia, Yemen and other countries facing conflict, extreme weather and economic instability need urgent support to prevent hunger from becoming a catastrophe.

World Food Day is also a reminder that child hunger remains a challenge in the United States. Federal nutrition programs, including the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Child and Adult Care Food Program and school meals, help millions of children access healthy food and support their learning and development. Children cannot reach their full potential when they are hungry.

While acute malnutrition is both treatable and preventable, prevention requires sustained investment in nutrition, health systems, resilient food systems and early action before crises escalate.  

Save the Children supports policies that reduce child hunger, improve nutrition and strengthen food security for children and families in the U.S. and around the world. Investing in children’s nutrition is one of the most effective ways to improve health, education outcomes and long-term opportunity.

In its programmatic work, Save the Children takes a comprehensive approach, investing in prevention, treating malnutrition and strengthening health systems while delivering food to children in need.  

This World Food Day, Save the Children urges policymakers to prioritize actions that prevent hunger, protect children’s nutrition and help to build a future in which every child has the opportunity to grow up healthy and thrive.  

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[1] Levels and Trends in Child Malnutrition. Joint Child Malnutrition Estimates: Key findings of the 2025 edition; May 2025. UNICEF/WHO/World Bank Group/JME-Brochure-UNSDG-regions-2025-v23.pdf