For the first time, Africa recorded the world's largest number of undernourished people in 2025, overtaking Asia with 309.2 million people against 291.8 million.
The two regions were almost tied in 2024, with Africa at 307.3 million and Asia at 307.6 million. A gap of roughly 300,000 had become 17.4 million a year later.
The two regions arrived there from opposite directions. Asia's undernourished population rose sharply during the pandemic, reaching 372.2 million in 2021, before resuming its decline. Africa, meanwhile, increased from 170.8 million in 2010 to 309.2 million in 2025.
The shift is clearer as a share of the global total. Africa accounted for 28% of the world's undernourished population in 2010; by 2025, its share had risen to 48%, even as the global total has declined from its 2022 peak.
FAO projects Africa's share to reach 56% by 2030, suggesting that the 2025 crossover with Asia is not an isolated moment but part of a longer-running shift.
