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Claim: A former University of Liberia student leader, A. Patrick Sowah, has alleged Liberia’s 2025 Global Hunger Index score is 30.0, making Liberia the second hungriest country after Niger.
Verdict: True. Despite pushback from some Facebook users, available research and Global Hunger Index (GHI) data confirm that Liberia ranks second-hungriest in West Africa.
Full Text
A former University of Liberia student leader, A. Patrick Sowah, argued that development under President Joseph Nyuma Boakai’s administration is meaningless if ordinary Liberians continue to endure widespread hunger.
Sowah, who now resides in the United States, accused the government of prioritising political activities over citizens’ welfare.
He made a comment on social media suggesting;
Mr Sowah criticised the Unity Party for allegedly spending millions on constructing its headquarters and organising homecoming programmes while the country remains the second hungriest in the sub-region.
His post sparked intense debate between opposition supporters and pro-government voices, coming just days before the Unity Party’s December 6, 2025, homecoming rally to raise funds for its headquarters.
Assistant Labour Minister Emmanuel Barnes challenged Sowah’s statement, arguing that the GHI data were collected from 2019 to 2023—not 2024 or 2025—and accused Sowah of misrepresenting this timeline.
“Read the methodology,” Another commentator, Terry Dorbor, dismissed Sowah’s assertion as political misinformation, urging him to “check the year well.”
Their argument centred on the assumption that the 2025 GHI report should reflect data collected during Boakai’s first year, rather than during the George Weah administration.
Amid the public dispute, DUBAWA initiated a deeper review to verify the accuracy of this claim.
Verification
A review of the Global Hunger Index methodology showed no mention of 2019 as the baseline year for Liberia’s data.
The report highlights only a few countries, such as Burundi, North Korea, Gaza, Sudan, and Yemen, that have data gaps between 2023 and 2025. Liberia is not listed among these countries.
An examination of the 2024 GHI report ranks Liberia as the second-hungriest country in West Africa, behind Niger. The index, as cited by Statista, identifies Niger and Liberia as the most severely affected countries in West Africa in terms of hunger and malnutrition.
Liberia recorded a score of 31.9, classified as serious, ranking 120th out of 127 countries.
The 2025 Global Hunger Index further confirms Liberia’s standing.
Liberia ranked 112th out of 123 countries with sufficient data on
Score: 30.0 (severe hunger).
Niger was ranked 117th out of 123 countries.
Score: 33.9 (severe hunger).
The rankings are based on factors including undernourishment, child wasting, stunting, and mortality.
Independent reporting by Business Insider Africa also lists Liberia and Niger among the top ten African countries most affected by hunger, reinforcing Sowah’s argument.
Conclusion
The evidence clearly supports this claim. Liberia’s 2025 GHI score is indeed 30.0, and the country ranks second-hungriest in West Africa after Niger.
