West Africa 2026: Delivering More Food, Faster, to More People
In 2026, the Global Food Programme’s work in West Africa achieved a new level of scale and effectiveness. By deepening local partnerships and digitizing our field operations, we delivered food assistance to 4.2 million people — an increase of 24% — while significantly reducing costs and delivery times.
This year was defined by operational efficiency. The changes we made allowed us to deliver more food, faster, and at a lower cost per person than at any point in the programme’s history, providing a strong foundation to expand our reach to children and communities across the region.
Strengthening Local Partnerships
The biggest change in 2026 was how we buy and move food. We nearly doubled our network of local partners, growing to 204 suppliers, transporters, and community groups who handle procurement and last-mile delivery. This allowed us to source 61% of our staple goods from within the region, a significant increase from 38% the previous year.
This shift had a dramatic effect on our efficiency. The average time to deliver food from port to community fell from 19 days to just 11. New rainy-season corridors, made possible by these partnerships, kept food moving through routes that had stopped us in previous years. The focus on local sourcing was also a key driver in reducing the cost per beneficiary by 18%, and improved tracking and storage helped cut warehouse losses by more than half.
Smarter, Faster Data
Our field teams completed the full rollout of our mobile data collection system in 2026. As a result, 87% of all monitoring visits are now digitized, compared to just 22% in 2025. This technological leap has transformed our ability to manage our programmes effectively.
Reports that previously took six weeks to compile now reach programme coordinators in under a week, with data reporting lag falling by 92%. For the first time, we can see distribution coverage and key nutrition indicators in near real-time on our dashboards, allowing us to respond to needs as they change, not a season later. During the year, we activated nine emergency responses, including for the September river basin floods, with all teams mobilized within our 72-hour target.
Reaching More Children and Communities
The efficiency gains of 2026 enabled us to expand our support to more vulnerable people. This year, we reached 4.2 million people with food assistance. Our direct community and school-based initiatives also grew significantly:
- Community kitchens: We now have 472 kitchens in operation, up from 310, many of which are linked to school programmes.
- School meals: The number of school districts receiving daily meals grew by 57% to 151.
- Children under five: Our nutrition monitoring enrolment reached 1.29 million children, an increase of 23% over the previous year.
Looking Ahead
The operational gains of 2026 are the foundation for our future work. They have created a more resilient, efficient, and responsive programme. In 2027, our goals are to extend community kitchen coverage to every enrolled school district and to deepen our nutrition monitoring for children under five. The goal these efficiencies serve is reaching every child who needs us.