Dominican Republic exits FAO hunger map after two decades of declining hunger

Overview

Updated 1 hour ago

Hunger in the Dominican Republic has fallen so far that the country has officially left the United Nations' hunger map. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) confirmed that undernourishment dropped from 21.3 percent of the population in 2006 to below 2.5 percent in 2025 — the threshold for being declared free of chronic hunger.

President Luis Abinader disclosed the exit in Rome during the World Food Forum, and the FAO formally recognized him on October 16 at the forum's closing ceremony. The Dominican Republic is the fifth country in Latin America to reach this point.

The decline rests on two tracks: more food produced at home and more money in households. Per-capita food production grew 122.3 percent from 2004 to 2024, and real household income rose 43.7 percent from 2015 to 2025. School meals now reach more than 2.2 million students, and 163 state dining halls serve 183,000 free hot meals daily.

The milestone does not end the job. Malnutrition, diet quality, and the cost of healthy food remain, and a drought plan for 2026-2027 signals the next test: whether the gains survive climate shocks.

Why it matters

The Dominican Republic shows a middle-income country can end chronic hunger in a generation through sustained farm and social policy, not wealth alone.

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Key Indicators

Below 2.5%

Undernourishment prevalence

Down from 21.3% of the population in 2006; the FAO threshold for leaving its hunger map.

17.3%

Monetary poverty rate

Fell from 41.1% in 2015 to 17.3% in 2025.

2.2%

Extreme poverty rate

Down from 8.7% in 2015.

+122.3%

Per-capita food production growth

Growth from 2004 to 2024; domestic output now covers more than 85% of food demand.

2.2M+

Students covered by school feeding

Up from 1.7 million students in 2019.

+43.7%

Real household income growth per capita

From 2015 to 2025, a key driver of the hunger decline.

Voices

Curated perspectives — historical figures and your fellow readers.

Ever wondered what historical figures would say about today's headlines?

People Involved

Luis Abinader

President of the Dominican Republic

In office; announced the country's exit from the FAO hunger map

QU Dongyu

Director General, Food and Agriculture Organization

Presented the recognition to President Abinader at the World Food Forum

Daris Javier Cuevas

Professor, School of Economics, Autonomous University of Santo Domingo (UASD)

Public counterpoint to celebratory readings of the hunger-map exit

Organizations Involved

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

United Nations agency

Publisher of the hunger map; certified the Dominican Republic's exit

The United Nations agency that tracks global hunger and maintains the hunger map.

Ministry of Agriculture, Dominican Republic

Government ministry

Implements the agricultural policies behind the hunger gains

The government body carrying out farm financing, irrigation, and input subsidies credited for the exit.

National Institute for Student Welfare (INABIE)

Government agency

Runs the national school feeding program

Administers Dominican school feeding, which grew from 1.7 million students in 2019 to more than 2.2 million by 2025.

Timeline

2006 October 2026

5 events Latest: 2 days ago

Tap a bar to jump to that date

October 2026
FAO formally recognizes the Dominican Republic
Latest Recognition

FAO Director General Qu Dongyu honors Abinader at the closing of the World Food Forum in Rome.
2 days ago
Abinader announces the exit in Rome
Statement

During the World Food Forum, the president tells FAO representatives the country has left the hunger map.
October 2026
2025
Undernourishment falls below 2.5 percent
Milestone

Prevalence crosses the FAO threshold for leaving the hunger map.
2025
August 2020
Abinader takes office
Political

New president makes eliminating chronic hunger a stated priority of his administration.
August 2020
2006
Undernourishment measured at 21.3 percent
Data

Baseline for the two-decade decline: more than a fifth of the population undernourished.
2006

Scenarios

Dominican Republic stays off the FAO hunger map

Likely Resolves by Aug 1, 2027

Discussed by: Luis Abinader administration; FAO assessments

If farm financing, irrigation, and social programs hold, the next FAO report keeps Dominican undernourishment below 2.5 percent and the country off the hunger map. The government argues the gains are structural, backed by domestic production that now supplies more than 85 percent of food demand.

Drought or price shock pushes hunger back toward the threshold

Possible Resolves by Aug 1, 2028

Discussed by: UASD economist Daris Javier Cuevas; hoy.com.do analysis; government's 2026-2027 drought plan

The government itself flagged drought as the main weather risk and launched an anticipatory plan for the 2026-2027 season to protect irrigation, watersheds, and small producers. If a severe dry spell raises food prices and cuts harvests, undernourishment could tick back up toward the 2.5 percent line.

Diet quality and affordability become the next policy fight

Likely Resolves by Aug 1, 2027

Discussed by: President Abinader's post-exit remarks; hoy.com.do; FAO Americas

Abinader said leaving the hunger map does not end malnutrition or guarantee healthy, affordable diets. FAO and Dominican analysts point to the cost of a healthy food basket and the difficulty low-income households face in buying varied, nutritious food — issues the undernourishment rate does not capture.

Historical Context

2 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.

2014

Brazil exits the FAO hunger map (2014)

Brazil left the FAO hunger map in 2014 after undernourishment fell below 5 percent, following the Bolsa Família conditional cash transfer program that paid poor families to keep children in school and vaccinated, alongside minimum-wage increases.

Then

Brazil was celebrated globally as proof that a large developing economy could end chronic hunger through social policy.

Now

By 2022, an economic crisis and the pandemic pushed tens of millions of Brazilians back into severe food insecurity, and the country returned to the hunger map.

Why this matters now

Brazil shows hunger-map exits can be reversed by economic shocks — a cautionary backdrop for the Dominican Republic's claim that its gains are structural.

2021-2022

Global hunger rises after COVID-19 and the war in Ukraine (2021-2022)

FAO's 2022 State of Food Security report estimated that roughly 735 million people worldwide were undernourished in 2022, up tens of millions from before the pandemic, as COVID-19, conflict, inflation, and supply-chain shocks combined.

Then

World hunger climbed for the first time in years, reversing a decade of gradual decline.

Now

The rise made progress stories rarer and pushed governments to confront climate- and conflict-driven food shocks.

Why this matters now

The Dominican Republic's exit landed during this global hunger surge, which makes its achievement stand out — and makes the drought risk at home more consequential.