Nearly 191.2 million Nigerians were unable to afford a healthy diet in 2025 as soaring food prices pushed proper nutrition beyond the reach of millions, according to a new report released by the United Nations.
The findings are contained in the 2026 State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World report, jointly published by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the World Food Programme (WFP) and the World Health Organisation (WHO).
The report showed that the number of Nigerians who could not afford a healthy diet climbed from 137.5 million in 2017 to 191.2 million in 2025.
It also revealed that the minimum daily cost of eating a healthy diet in Nigeria rose significantly during the same period, increasing from $2.78 to $4.17 in purchasing power parity per person.
The UN agencies explained that the estimate is based on the minimum daily cost of buying locally available foods capable of meeting nutritional requirements.
According to the report, a healthy diet consists of a balanced combination of foods drawn from six major groups: starchy staples, animal-source foods, legumes, nuts and seeds, vegetables, fruits, and oils and fats.
Across Africa, the report found that 66.6 per cent of the population could not afford a healthy diet in 2025. By comparison, the figure stood at 28.9 per cent in Asia and 25.7 per cent in Latin America and the Caribbean.
It noted that while access to healthy diets has improved in many parts of the world, affordability continues to worsen across Africa.
The report also stated that Africa has overtaken Asia as the region with the highest number of people living with hunger.
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It estimated that 309 million Africans experienced hunger in 2025, representing 20 per cent of the continent’s population. Asia recorded 292 million hungry people, while Latin America and the Caribbean accounted for 32 million.
“The share of the global number of people estimated to be facing hunger who live in Africa has grown since 2010, surpassing Asia in 2025,” the report said.
Globally, between 608 million and 696 million people were estimated to have suffered from hunger in 2025. Using the midpoint estimate, about 645 million people were affected, representing a reduction of 14 million compared to 2024 and 43 million compared to 2022.
The report attributed the gradual global improvement to the recovery from the economic and social disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
However, it warned that ongoing conflicts, climate-related disasters and declining humanitarian support could reverse the gains recorded.
Looking ahead, the report projected that although the number of undernourished people worldwide could fall by about 20 per cent by 2030, between 510 million and 520 million people would still face hunger. Africa is expected to account for 56 per cent of that global total.
The report observed that Africa recorded its first improvement in food insecurity levels since 2015, with the proportion of hungry people falling slightly from 20.3 per cent in 2024 to 20 per cent in 2025. Despite that progress, rapid population growth meant the total number of people facing hunger continued to rise.
It further estimated that 2.1 billion people, or 25.8 per cent of the world’s population, experienced moderate or severe food insecurity in 2025, an improvement from 27.1 per cent in 2024 and 28.7 per cent in 2020.
The report added that rural communities and women remain the groups most affected by food insecurity.
The UN agencies warned that worsening insecurity, extreme weather conditions and shrinking humanitarian funding continue to pose serious threats to global food security, particularly in vulnerable regions.