WFP scales up response in Lebanon as displacement crisis enters third month and rising costs push food out of reach

WFP has rapidly scaled up its response nationwide, but the situation remains highly fragile. Sustained humanitarian access, stable supply flows and predictable funding are critical to ensuring continued assistance for those most in need.

Below are the latest updates on WFP operations and the food security situation in Lebanon:

• Since 2 March, WFP has reached a total of more than 700,000 conflict-affected people across Lebanon with emergency food and cash assistance.
• On average, WFP has supported close to 150,000 people per day since the escalation, providing hot meals, ready-to-eat rations, and food parcels to families sheltering in displacement sites.
• The ongoing conflict characterized by daily bombardments and displacement orders is challenging humanitarian access and resulting in continued displacement. These conditions are constraining the delivery of critical assistance, particularly in hard-to-reach areas.
• A total of 24 humanitarian convoys have been deployed to southern Lebanon, including border villages, Tyre and Hermel, to reach communities facing access constraints. More than 50 percent of the requested convoys have been delayed or cancelled due to movement and access risks.
• Current WFP assistance includes emergency cash support for close to half a million Lebanese through national systems, as well as cash support for more than 100,000 Syrian refugees.
• Since the onset of the emergency, WFP has distributed nearly five million hot meals, prioritizing newly displaced families arriving with limited belongings.
• WFP has supported more than 215,000 displaced people across over 500 shelters nationwide, alongside approximately 85,500 people in host communities and hard-to-reach areas.
• To help stabilize food availability, a shipment of 250 metric tons of wheat flour recently entered Lebanon through the corridor with Jordan, made possible through close coordination between Lebanese and Jordanian authorities. The shipment is supporting approximately 10,000 vulnerable households.
• The WFP-led Logistics Cluster has supported a total of 64 partners — including UNFPA, UNRWA, IOM, UNICEF, UNHCR, and international and national NGOs — of which 18 have utilized the logistics services to transport nearly 2,500 m³ of cargo.
• The latest food security analysis confirms a sharp deterioration nationwide, with 1.24 million people — nearly one in four — facing acute food insecurity (IPC Phase 3 or worse) between April and August 2026. Displacement, rising food and fuel prices, market disruptions, and broader economic shocks are driving the crisis.
• While food remains available in many areas, it is becoming increasingly unaffordable. Since the start of the escalation, vegetable prices have risen by more than 20 percent, while bread prices have increased by around 15 percent. Market conditions vary significantly: in southern Lebanon and Nabatieh, more than 80 percent of markets are no longer functioning, while in Beirut and other areas markets remain operational but under growing strain.
• To sustain life-saving assistance and respond to rising needs, WFP requires USD 112 million between May and August 2026 (USD 44.1 million per month). Without adequate and predictable funding, WFP’s ability to maintain emergency food and cash assistance for vulnerable families across Lebanon will be at risk.

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The United Nations World Food Programme is the world’s largest humanitarian organization saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace, stability and prosperity for people recovering from conflict, disasters and the impact of climate change.

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