Globally, 108 million people face severe food insecurity. In four countries – Somalia, Yemen, South Sudan and Nigeria - famine looms, threatening over 20 million people with starvation and extreme food insecurity as a result of conflict, adverse weather and other shocks. At the same time, food security assistance makes up 40 per cent of all humanitarian assistance expenditure. Yet the demand for food assistance is not being met.

The need for effective food assistance and organised global, regional and local responses is now clearer than ever. But why does food insecurity persist? What are the challenges to achieving effective assistance in fragile and conflict-affected states? And what are the solutions to some of the problems faced by donors, NGOs and governments alike?

This event, drawing on the World Food Programme's (WFP) 2017 global stocktake of food assistance, brings together voices from across academic, NGO and donor communities. Our experts debate and discuss what we are already doing and, critically, what we need to do as a community to meet the global demand for food assistance and realise food security for all.