Yaounde/Nairobi/Geneva – 10 March 2026 — Millions of people in Cameroon are facing a worsening food crisis that is receiving little international attention, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) warned today.
A new assessment conducted by the Cameroon Red Cross with support from the IFRC network, surveyed nearly 6,000 households and found that hunger is rapidly increasing.
More than 3.3 million people are struggling to find enough food, with families in the country’s Far North, North and East regions already skipping meals, selling livestock or taking on debt just to survive.
In some of the worst-affected areas, 64 per cent of households are experiencing severe food insecurity, while food stocks last less than one month.
Adesh Tripathee, IFRC Head of Country Cluster Delegation in Yaounde, says:
“Cameroon is facing a silent hunger crisis. Families are doing all they can to simply to stay alive. This crisis is not making headlines, but for millions of people it is already an everyday reality.”
The Cameroon Red Cross, supported by IFRC and Movement partners, is delivering cash transfers, cereal bank support, agricultural recovery, nutrition activities and community resilience programmes. However, existing resources are insufficient relative to the scale of needs.
The IFRC has launched an Emergency Appeal for CHF 9.6 million to support the Cameroon Red Cross in scaling up assistance for the most vulnerable communities. The operation will provide integrated support including cash assistance, food support, livelihood recovery, nutrition services, clean water and sanitation, and protection programmes.
The IFRC calls on partners and donors to urgently mobilize resources to protect the most vulnerable communities and prevent further deterioration of the humanitarian situation.
Families at breaking point
The Red Cross assessment revealed that more than 60 per cent of households are relying on extreme coping strategies, including selling livestock, tools and other productive assets needed to plant crops in the next season.
Only five per cent of households still have the capacity to absorb another shock, leaving communities extremely vulnerable to further climate shocks, price increases or conflict.
Parents are increasingly sacrificing their own meals so their children can eat.
A father from Logone-et-Chari in Cameroon’s Far North region says:
“We no longer talk about eating well; we talk about staying alive. First, we sold our goats to buy maize. Then I had to sell my plough so we could eat that evening. Now my wife and I skip food for two days so our children can have a handful of grain.”
Children are particularly at risk. The assessment found that eight in ten children are not eating enough nutritious food, putting them at risk of acute malnutrition and long-term developmental harm.
Cécile Akama Mfoumou, President of the Cameroon Red Cross, says:
“The situation is deteriorating rapidly. Families are exhausting the coping mechanisms available to them. Immediate support is critical to prevent further suffering.”
The situation is expected to worsen as the lean season (the period between planting and harvesting crops where food availability is at it’s lowest) arrives earlier than usual, starting in April instead of June, due to exhausted food stocks and reduced harvests caused by floods and erratic rainfall.
At the same time, more than 510,000 people are internally displaced, further straining already fragile livelihoods.
Although food is still available in many markets, it has become unaffordable for most families.
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