International bodies in Somalia
World Food Programme (WFP) in Somalia: what it does
The World Food Programme gives food, cash and nutrition support in Somalia, helps run the government's Baxnaano safety net and school meals, and runs the UN air service for aid workers. It is the largest receiver of recorded humanitarian funding in Somalia: US$431.9 million in 2024 and US$112.0 million in 2025, according to OCHA.
What it does
WFP says it delivers food, nutrition and cash assistance in emergencies and works on longer-term resilience through social protection, school meals and climate adaptation (WFP Somalia). It lists these strands:
- Emergency aid: food or cash, and fortified foods to treat and prevent malnutrition in children and in pregnant and breastfeeding women.
- Safety nets: support to the government-owned national safety net, Baxnaano, and to locally sourced school meals.
- Food systems: livelihoods training, community assets, help to smallholder farmers, and anticipatory cash before forecast climate shocks.
- Government support: policy advice and technical help to federal and member-state ministries.
- Services: WFP manages the UN Humanitarian Air Service (UNHAS), which flies aid workers and supplies.
Who leads it
Hameed Nuru is WFP's Country Director in Somalia (UN Somalia, 15 May 2026).
The money
OCHA's Financial Tracking Service (FTS) records humanitarian funding that donors and agencies report to it. It is not the whole budget of an organisation, and recent years are still being filled in. FTS lists these amounts received by WFP for work in Somalia (OCHA FTS):
| Year | Humanitarian funding recorded (US$) |
|---|---|
| 2024 | 431.9 million |
| 2025 | 112.0 million |
| 2026, to November | 55.2 million |
The same figures for 212 organisations are on this site's aid funding list.
The fall from 2024 to 2026 matches WFP's own statement that "critical funding shortages" let it reach "only a fraction of those in need" (WFP Somalia).
What it reports
WFP says 5.4 million people in Somalia face emergency levels of hunger on the IPC scale, and that hunger has grown sharply since early 2025. It says there is a risk of famine in Baidoa district for 26,000 displaced people under a worst-case scenario for October to December 2026, and that malnutrition among displaced people in Beledweyne is expected to reach extremely critical levels. It puts poverty at 54% of the population (WFP Somalia).
How the work is shared
Baxnaano is run by the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs. School meals link to the Ministry of Education. Drought response is coordinated with the disaster management agency and OCHA.
How to use it
WFP's Somalia page has its country brief and news (WFP Somalia).
Sources
- WFP Somalia · wfp.org
- UN Somalia, 15 May 2026 · somalia.un.org
- OCHA FTS · fts.unocha.org
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Where this matters
- Muqdisho (Mogadishu) and BanaadirMogadishu (Muqdisho) is Somalia's capital and makes up the Banadir region, with about 2.97 million people in 20 districts.
- Beledweyne (Belet Weyne) and HiiraanHiiraan is a region of Hirshabelle State on the Shabelle river, with Beledweyne as its capital and about 505,000 to 598,000 people.
- Baydhabo (Baidoa) and BayBay is a farming region in South West State, with Baidoa (Baydhabo) as its main city and about 1.25 to 1.8 million people.
Same era
- Australia18,401 people of Somali ancestry and 8,101 born in Somalia lived in Australia at the 2021 Census, more than half in Victoria. History, work, issues.
- Birmingham (Somali diaspora)About 17,000 to 21,600 Somalis live in Birmingham (Census 2021), mostly in Nechells, Newtown, Small Heath and Alum Rock. History, work, health and ties home.
- Bristol (Somali diaspora)9,167 people in Bristol identified as Somali or Somalilander in Census 2021, the city's largest minority group. Where they live, work, housing, leaders and ties home.
- Calgary, Alberta, Canada2,845 people of Somali origin lived in Calgary at the 2021 Census, plus 890 in Brooks. How they came, who serves them and what they face.
- Denmark (Somali diaspora)21,885 people of Somali origin lived in Denmark in 2026, half born there. Numbers, history, work, permit reviews, and ties home.
- DjiboutiAbout 13,900 refugees from Somalia live in Djibouti (Aug 2026): numbers since 1990, Ali Addeh, Holl-Holl, the 2017 refugee law, Arta 2000 and 2025 returns.
Keep reading
- Every aid organisation funded in Somalia, 2024 to 2026: UN agencies and NGOs by money receivedA directory of every UN agency, international NGO, Somali NGO and other body recorded as receiving humanitarian funding for Somalia in 2024, 2025 and 2026, with the amounts from the UN Financial Tracking Service and a CSV download.
- International bodies in Somalia: the UN, the African Union, the World Bank and the IMFWhich international bodies work in Somalia, what each does, how the UN presence changed in 2024 to 2026, and Somalia's own seats in world bodies.
- UNICEF in Somalia: what it doesWhat UNICEF does in Somalia: its offices, staff and partners, who leads it, the funding it receives, and what it reports about child malnutrition in 2026.
- FAO in Somalia: farming, livestock, fisheries and the FSNAU and SWALIM data unitsWhat FAO does in Somalia: staff, offices and projects, who leads it, funding 2024 to 2026, and what it reports doing in 2026.
- OCHA in Somalia and the Somalia Humanitarian FundWhat OCHA does in Somalia: coordination, the 2026 aid plan, the Somalia Humanitarian Fund, who leads it, and its funding 2024 to 2026.
- World Health Organization (WHO) in Somalia: what it doesWhat WHO does in Somalia: health system support, vaccines and outbreaks, who leads it, its funding 2024 to 2026, and what it reports doing in 2026.