FAO GIEWS Country Brief on Angola –

FOOD SECURITY SNAPSHOT Low rainfall likely to have curbed 2026 cereal production Food inflation slows but remains elevated Poor harvests likely to aggravate acute food insecurity in 2026 Low rainfall likely to have curbed 2026 cereal production Harvesting of the 2026 main season cereal crops (maize, millet, rice, and sorghum) was completed in July. Although official estimates on cereal crop production are not yet available, remote sensing analysis indicates that yields are likely to have declined year on year and production is expected to be at an average- to below‑average level in 2026. The main 2025/26 cropping season, stretching from September to July, was largely characterized by below‑average cumulative rainfall amounts. In the central cereal‑growing provinces of Benguela, Bié and Huambo, which together account for about 50 percent of the national maize output, monthly rainfall totals were consistently below average between October 2025 and March 2026, including during critical crop development stages. Cumulative rainfall amounts over this period were about 50 percent lower than the long‑term average, resulting in poor vegetation conditions in cropped areas. Heavy rainfall in April arrived too late to substantially improve crop conditions and, in some localized areas, caused flooding. In the southern provinces of Cuando Cubango and Cunene, where most millet and sorghum are grown, rainfall totals were also lower than average, but the shortfall was less pronounced than in the central provinces. As a result, millet and sorghum yields are expected to be close to the five‑year average. Looking ahead to the 2026/27 cropping season, early forecasts point to a higher probability of lower‑than‑average rainfall amounts in the first half of the season. This outlook is influenced by the El Niño event which emerged in June and is typically associated with reduced rainfall totals across much of Southern Africa. Food inflation slows but remains elevated According to the lates