WFP Warns at COP31 Opening on November 9 That El Niño Could Push at Least 49 Million More People Into Acute Food Insecurity by the End of 2027
Antalya — As COP31 began in Antalya, Türkiye, on November 9, the United Nations World Food Programme warned that humanitarian assistance alone cannot keep pace with recurrent crises caused by increasingly frequent weather extremes and a strengthening El Niño.
WFP analysis projects that the current El Niño could push at least 49 million more people into acute food insecurity by the end of 2027. The phenomenon is expected to reach peak intensity between October and December 2026, while its impact on planting seasons, harvests and food prices could continue into early 2028.
Carl Skau, WFP's Deputy Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer, said COP31 must seize this window and turn it into faster, more accessible financing for the countries and communities on the front lines of disasters.
WFP is the UN's largest user of pre-arranged financing, drawing on anticipatory action, insurance, and contingency funding to deliver support before or immediately after an emergency. Between January and September, WFP reached 4.9 million people with early warnings and provided more than 1.5 million with assistance ahead of forecast floods, storms, and droughts, backed by US$46.2 million in pre-arranged funds.
The UN Secretary-General's spokesperson's office said at the daily briefing the same day that pre-arranged financing accounts for less than 2 per cent of global humanitarian funding. WFP is calling on leaders at COP31 to scale up predictable, pre-arranged financing that can be released before forecasted hazards escalate into disasters, and to invest in nationally led early warning, anticipatory action, disaster risk management, and shock-responsive social protection systems.
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: Wikipedia/Wikimedia Commons 词条主图：Million People March
