Globally, millions of vulnerable households are at risk of increased hunger and poverty due to droughts and floods as a result of a climatic occurrence: El Niño. This phenomenon is not an individual weather event but a climatic pattern which occurs every two to seven years and lasts 9-12 months. No two El Niño events are ever the same and it is thought that this particular occurrence could be the most powerful on record. The strongest El Niño in 1997/1998 killed some 21,000 people and caused damage to infrastructure worth US$ 36 billion. According to the World Bank, El Niño is likely to have a negative impact in more isolated local food markets, and many countries are already facing increased food prices. Food Security Cluster partners have implemented preparedness activities and are responding in countries where the effects of El Niño have materialised, such as Ethiopia, Papua New Guinea, Malawi and throughout Central America. In Southern Africa, many areas have seen the driest October-December period since at least 1981, and some 14 million people in the region are already facing hunger, which adds to fears of a spike in the numbers of the food insecure later this year through 2017. The global Food Security Cluster is providing support to stakeholders through continuous monitoring and dissemination of relevant data to stakeholders, ensuring that country level coordination mechanisms are well organised and advocating on behalf of affected countries.