In the next 24 hours 8,000 children like Guled* will die from hunger.** This is devastating.
The world is going through an unprecedented hunger crisis. Conflict, climate shocks and rising food prices are leaving children not knowing when they’ll next eat.
To fight hunger we're developing incredible new solutions that don’t just treat malnutrition but stop it from taking hold - and only with the support of people like you can we reach every child that needs them.
Will you donate today to stop children becoming dangerously malnourished?
Children like Guled can't wait
At just 10 months old, Guled* (pictured above) was diagnosed with severe acute malnutrition. His mum, Aasha*, carried him to Save the Children’s clinic in Puntland, Somalia. He was losing weight rapidly and had become too weak to eat.
Our health workers rushed him to hospital. As Aasha watched her baby fight for his life, every parent's worst nightmare was unfolding before her eyes.
Guled survived. Today, at 5 years old, he's full of joy. But being so malnourished so young has left its mark. His immune system has been so damaged that he developed tuberculosis and continues to struggle with illness.
Even if children survive hunger, its impact can last a lifetime, which is why early intervention is so important.
Now 5, Guled is alive because he got help in time. Together we can help more children before hunger becomes life-threatening. Mustafa Saeed / Save The Children
The earlier we act, the more lives we can save
That's why with your support, Save the Children is doing more than treating malnutrition. We are finding new ways to stop children reaching crisis point in the first place. We're developing innovative solutions that help us predict, detect and prevent malnutrition before it becomes life-threatening.
- In Ethiopia, we're testing a simple foot-measuring tool to help predict, detect and prevent hunger. A simple tool new parents can use to measure their baby’s little feet – a great indicator of low birth weight - without the need for scales or even a medic to tell them when to seek help.
- In Vanuatu, we create sealed "ready meals" made from local veg, chicken and fish that last two years without refrigeration, so children stay fed through cyclones.
- In Niger, we combine climate, farming and health data using AI, so we can predict food shortages months ahead and reach at-risk children before crisis hits.
- In Indonesia, we install solar-powered pumps that bring clean water home and keep crops alive.
- In Somalia, we train expectant parents to spot malnutrition early using simple arm measurements and basic checks.
- Globally, we treat severe malnutrition with ready-to-eat therapeutic food - a nutrient-rich peanut paste that children can eat straight from the sachet.
An estimated 35 million are facing acute malnutrition and need urgent support.
With your help, together we can bring these innovative new tools to more children around the world.
This is your moment to stop hunger before it turns deadly
Mustafa Saeed / Save The Children
Eyad AlTawil / Save the Children
Save the Children has innovated a simple, foot measuring tool to help predict, detect and prevent hunger. A simple tool new parents can use to measure their baby’s little feet – a great indicator of low birth weight - without the need for scales or even a medic to tell them when to seek help. Seifu Assegid/Save the Children
What if together, we could stop hunger getting a foothold?
Your donation could save lives today and help stop hunger tomorrow:
£50 could provide an acutely malnourished child in a hunger emergency with lifesaving peanut paste
£150 could help train parents to recognise the signs of malnutrition before it becomes life-threatening
£500 could help keep a Save the Children nutrition clinic running to give more children lifesaving treatment
The good news is that hunger is both preventable and treatable. With the right support at the right time, children can recover to live happier and healthier lives.
Child hunger: The scale of the crisis
The world is going through an unprecedented hunger crisis. Conflict, climate shocks and rising food prices are leaving children not knowing when they’ll next eat. In addition, aid cuts by countries like the UK and US have put an enormous strain on our food and healthcare systems.
That’s why we need to ask for more funding to keep our life-saving work going.
*Names changed to protect children.
**World Food Programme, March 2026.
