Number of people who are severely food insecure in Democratic Republic of Congo
Democratic Republic of Congo: Number of people who are severely food insecure was 45.00 million people in 2023. ▲ Rising
Number of people who are severely food insecure in Democratic Republic of Congo, 2019–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in people.
Analysis
In 2023, number of people who are severely food insecure in Democratic Republic of Congo stood at 45.00 million people. That is the highest value across all 5 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 5.4% on the previous year and up 25.7% over five years.
Democratic Republic of Congo ranks 2nd of 118 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
Number of people who are severely food insecure in Democratic Republic of Congo, year by year
| Year | people | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 35.80 million people | — |
| 2020 | 37.60 million people | +5.0% |
| 2021 | 39.90 million people | +6.1% |
| 2022 | 42.70 million people | +7.0% |
| 2023 | 45.00 million people | +5.4% |
Democratic Republic of Congo compared with similar countries
- Democratic Republic of Congo's 45.00 million people is above the median for low income countries, which is 4.90 million people, 9.2× the median. (15 countries reporting)
- Democratic Republic of Congo's 45.00 million people is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 2.70 million people, 16.7× the median. (32 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 35.80 million people | 35.80 million people | 35.80 million people | 1 |
| 2020s | 41.30 million people | 37.60 million people | 45.00 million people | 4 |
Countries ranked near Democratic Republic of Congo
More reference data data for Democratic Republic of Congo
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 1.44 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Burning - Crop residues 0.2179 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 (AR5) - Enteric 3,057 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 (AR5) - Burning - Crop 235.34 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) (AR5) - Manure left on Pasture 1,764 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 1.82 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) (AR5) - Manure applied to Soils 313.43 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 11.56 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 1.56 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O (AR5) - Burning - Crop 57.74 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is number of people who are severely food insecure in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- Number of people who are severely food insecure in Democratic Republic of Congo was 45.00 million people in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest number of people who are severely food insecure recorded in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- The highest recorded value was 45.00 million people in 2023.
- What is the lowest number of people who are severely food insecure recorded in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- The lowest recorded value was 35.80 million people in 2019.
- How does Democratic Republic of Congo rank for number of people who are severely food insecure?
- Democratic Republic of Congo ranks 2nd out of 118 countries with data for 2023.
- Where does this Democratic Republic of Congo data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Number of people who are severely food insecure. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 5 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Severe food insecurity is defined by the Food Insecurity Experience Scale (FIES). It is strongly related to insufficient quantity of food (energy).