The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has urged leaders to invest in nationally led early warning, anticipatory action, disaster risk management, and shock-responsive social protection systems.

WFP made the call in a statement as the UN Climate Change Conference (COP31) opens in Antalya, Türkiye on Monday.

Over 90,000 people are expected in Antalya as pressure mounts to deliver on climate promises. The summit is set to close on Friday, November 20.

The UN agency also called on leaders to scale up predictable, pre-arranged financing that could be released before forecasted hazards escalate into disasters.

It, however, warned that humanitarian assistance alone could not keep pace with recurrent crises caused by increasingly frequent weather extremes and a strengthening El Niño.

The agency said the communities have little time to recover between shocks, which is why WFP is calling on leaders to deliver sustained investment through innovative financial solutions that prevent predictable weather-related hazards from becoming hunger emergencies.

Areas already affected by conflict and economic instability face climate shocks that risk pushing millions more people into acute food insecurity.

WFP analysis projects that the current El Niño could push at least 49 million more people into acute food insecurity by the end of 2027.

The phenomenon is expected to reach peak intensity between October and December 2026, while its impact on planting seasons, harvests and food prices could continue into early 2028.

These risks are already visible across regions. Drought is affecting growing seasons in Central America’s Dry Corridor, while parts of the Sahel and East Africa are also experiencing severe dryness.

Southern Africa faces the threat of drought during a crucial growing season, while heavy rain and flooding could affect the Horn of Africa and parts of South America.

“With floods, droughts and storms striking so often, vulnerable families have little time to recover,” Carl Skau, WFP’s Deputy Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer, said .

“El Niño will intensify that pressure, but because it can be predicted, we have a chance to act before crops fail, livelihoods are lost, and hunger sets in.

“COP31 must seize this window and turn it into faster, more accessible financing for the countries and communities on the front lines of disasters.”

WFP is the UN’s largest user of pre-arranged financing, drawing on anticipatory action, insurance, and contingency funding to deliver support before or immediately after an emergency.

At COP31, WFP is working closely with other UN agencies to scale-up pre-arranged financing and strengthen collaboration, with the aim of lowering costs and making scarce resources go further.

WFP is acting before shocks hit. Between January and September, WFP reached 4.9 million people with early warnings and provided more than 1.5 million with assistance ahead of forecast floods, storms, and droughts, backed by US$46.2 million in pre-arranged funds.

However, these approaches remain far below the scale required. Pre-arranged mechanisms account for less than two percent of global humanitarian financing.

(NAN)