Global Hunger Index 2026: Pakistan Faces Worsening Food Crisis

Pakistan has recorded a serious hunger score of 25.5 on the 2026 Global Hunger Index, reflecting a worsening food security crisis driven by persistent economic instability, high food inflation, and severe climate shocks across South Asia.

ISLAMABAD, October 15: Pakistan has recorded a serious hunger score of 25.5 on the 2026 Global Hunger Index, highlighting a deteriorating food security crisis across the nation. Released on Wednesday under the theme “No Security Without Food Security,” the joint report by Welthungerhilfe, the Institute for International Law of Peace and Armed Conflict at Ruhr University Bochum, and the Swiss organisation Helvetas indicates that broader regional progress in South Asia has largely stagnated.

​According to the findings, conditions in Pakistan and Afghanistan have worsened since 2018, primarily driven by deep economic instability, sharp food price inflation, and extreme weather events. The report noted that soaring costs have heavily eroded household purchasing power, severely constraining public access to basic nutritional supplies. Undernourishment across Pakistan has climbed from low levels recorded in 2018 to medium severity, while child wasting has risen toward the high threshold.

​Across the wider South Asian region, the food security situation remains serious, registering a regional score of 23.5. Although South Asia’s score has dropped substantially from an alarming 37.5 in 2000, the vast majority of that historical progress occurred prior to 2018. While both Pakistan and Afghanistan have successfully transitioned out of the alarming category since 2000, child stunting levels remain exceptionally high.

​Pakistan’s national stunting rate continues a gradual downward trajectory, whereas Afghanistan’s rate has edged up slightly since 2018. Meanwhile, child mortality rates in both nations have declined from very high levels in 2000 to medium levels in the current assessment.

​Global Hunger Index 2026 Highlights Rising Insecurity

​The comprehensive international report warns that high levels of acute food insecurity will persist across the region. Heavy monsoon rains and destructive flooding have caused localized crop losses in parts of Pakistan and Bangladesh, while below-average rainfall and above-average temperatures adversely affected Afghanistan’s agricultural season.

​Estimates compiled by the Food and Agriculture Organisation indicate that 218 million people in South Asia, including Iran, were undernourished between 2023 and 2025, accounting for roughly one-third of the global total. Globally, hunger is on the rise again following nearly two decades of consistent progress. The 2026 global score stands at 18.1, worsening from 17.6 in 2018.

​The index reveals that hunger has increased across 32 countries since 2018, and 57 nations are currently on track to miss achieving even low hunger levels by 2030. Three of the index’s four core indicators—undernourishment, child stunting, and child wasting—have deteriorated globally, while child mortality has continued a slight, steady decline.

​State-based armed conflicts, which have reached their highest level since World War II, alongside frequent extreme weather episodes, are cited as major drivers of this global reversal. Regional conflicts, such as the war in Iran and ongoing shipping disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab al-Mandab Strait, are driving up fuel, transportation, and fertilizer expenses. Simultaneously, Russia’s war in Ukraine and subsequent Black Sea export restrictions threaten higher global wheat prices, rendering basic food supplies increasingly unaffordable across the Global South.

​Compounding these compounding pressures, international funding dedicated to food security has fallen back to 2016-2017 levels, forcing deep cuts to vital aid programmes and emergency food rations. The report urges governments worldwide to immediately reverse funding reductions for humanitarian assistance and data collection infrastructure to effectively prevent and manage unfolding crises.

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