A Year in Review: 2025 and the World’s Poorest Countries

By nearly every measure, 2025 proved to be a uniquely difficult year for the world’s poorest countries, according to global aid agencies and humanitarian organizations.

Conflicts persisted and intensified, with 61 wars recorded across 36 countries, the highest number since World War II, leaving millions displaced and placing enormous strain on fragile economies and food systems.

Aid groups warn that prolonged warfare has disrupted farming, trade, and access to basic services, contributing to widespread hunger.

An estimated 60 million children were left starving due to conflict-related food shortages, while projections from the World Food Programme suggest that 318 million people could face crisis-level hunger or worse in 2026.

Sudan emerged as the most severe humanitarian emergency, with the majority of its population requiring urgent assistance after years of civil war and mass displacement.
At the same time, climate shocks, including extreme heat and low rainfall, worsened food insecurity in parts of East Africa.

Compounding these challenges, many wealthy countries reduced foreign aid budgets in 2025. The shutdown of USAID, along with funding cuts by other major donors, sharply limited humanitarian response capacity.

Aid agencies caution that without renewed funding and diplomatic efforts, conditions in vulnerable countries are likely to deteriorate further in 2026.