Africa: At COP31, World Food Programme Urges Use of Innovative Finance to Prevent Climate Shocks From Becoming Hunger Emergencies

What the report says

The World Food Programme used COP31 to press governments and donors to expand innovative, pre-arranged financing so climate shocks do not turn into hunger emergencies, according to a report distributed by AllAfrica from WFP. The appeal was framed around regions already struggling with conflict, economic instability and worsening weather, where droughts, floods and storms can quickly deepen food insecurity.

WFP said its analysis projects the current El Niño could push at least 49 million additional people into acute food insecurity by the end of 2027. The agency said the peak effects are expected between October and December 2026, with consequences for planting, harvests and food prices potentially lasting into early 2028. It pointed to dry conditions in Central America’s Dry Corridor, the Sahel and East Africa, as well as drought risks in Southern Africa and flood risks in the Horn of Africa and parts of South America.

Carl Skau, WFP’s deputy executive director and chief operating officer, said the agency wants faster and more accessible financing so authorities can act before crops fail and livelihoods are lost. WFP said it has used anticipatory action, insurance and contingency funding to reach people ahead of shocks, including 4.9 million with early warnings and more than 1.5 million with assistance between January and September, backed by US$46.2 million.

The agency said these tools remain far below global needs, with pre-arranged mechanisms making up less than 2% of humanitarian financing. It called on COP31 leaders to scale up predictable funding, improve access for fragile and food-insecure countries, and invest in early warning, disaster risk management and shock-responsive social protection.