Gaza: Nutrition Vulnerability and Situation Analysis

Results from this analysis suggest the nutrition situation of women and children in Gaza is worsening everywhere, but especially in Northern Gaza and Rafah. In Northern Gaza, 1 in 6 children are acutely malnourished, with an estimated 3% facing the most severe form of wasting and requiring immediate treatment.

Action Against Hunger are members of the Global Nutrition Cluster, who produced this report. 

This Report documents the deteriorating nutrition situation during the first 120 days of the current war. It outlines the findings of a nutrition situation analysis carried out in Gaza
between December 2023–January 2024 and fills a crucial gap in nutrition data, where none had previously been available.

This analysis was conducted by a task force on Global Nutrition Information Systems in Emergencies under the leadership of the Global Nutrition Cluster to support the State of Palestine’s National Nutrition Cluster to analyse the nutrition situation in Gaza, with a focus on infants, children, pregnant and breastfeeding women.

The findings from the analysis show a sharp escalation in the drivers of malnutrition: food insecurity, lack of diet diversity, deteriorating infant and young child feeding practices, lack of access to safe water and sanitation, widespread disease, and a collapsed health system. This has severe consequences for those most vulnerable to malnutrition, including young children, and pregnant and breastfeeding women.

While there are differences in the data from different governorates, this analysis indicates a dire nutrition situation for the entire population of Gaza, both in the short and long term. It’s expected that all areas of Gaza will be affected by malnutrition, but governates receiving limited or no humanitarian assistance will be particularly impacted.