The world is facing a famine so devastating it could tip 10 million children into starvation – many of whom are already enduring a 'living hell' in refugee camps, World Vision Australia has warned.

More than 19 million people worldwide are at risk of famine from a deadly mix of COVID-19, conflict and natural disasters, a new report by the international organisation has found.

The grim prediction equates to a 50 per cent rise in people at risk of starvation, compared with 2019, and constitutes the worst hunger crisis in decades, according to World Vision’s Double Hardship report.

World Vision has helped more than 6.4 million people with food assistance during COVID-19, but CEO Daniel Wordsworth said aid agencies could not battle the looming crisis in the Middle East and Sub-Saharan Africa alone.

"COVID-19 has stoked a hunger crisis on a scale not seen in recent memory," he said.

"It has heaped yet another layer of suffering on people living in conflict hotspots - many of whom are refugees and already enduring a living hell. These people have been torn from their homes by war and conflict, languishing in camps for years. And now, life just got even worse.

"That’s why we all need to come together to avert this new disaster in the world’s conflict hotspots. The last thing we want to see again is the tragic images of famine that came out of Ethiopia in the '80s – and believe me, that’s what we are facing."