Pakistan has the worst hunger score in South Asia — Dawn
Pakistan recorded the highest score in South Asia in the 2026 Global Hunger Index. This indicates a deterioration in the country’s food security situation amid economic instability, climate shocks and global conflicts, Dawn reports.
The report was prepared by Welthungerhilfe, the Institute for International Law of Peace and Armed Conflict at Ruhr University Bochum, and the Swiss organization Helvetas. It was released under the theme “No Security Without Food Security.” The authors noted that progress in South Asia has largely stalled, while the situation in Pakistan and Afghanistan has worsened since 2018.
Inflation and crop losses
Economic instability and a sharp rise in food prices have reduced the purchasing power of Pakistani households and limited access to food. The level of undernourishment in the country increased from low in 2018 to moderate, while the prevalence of child wasting approached the high threshold.
In South Asia, the overall index score stands at 23.5, corresponding to a serious level. In 2000, it reached 37.5, but most improvements in the region occurred before 2018. In Pakistan and Afghanistan, the situation has shifted since 2000 from the alarming to the serious category, while the rate of child stunting remains very high.
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Heavy rains and floods caused localized crop losses in certain areas of Pakistan and Bangladesh. In Afghanistan, the 2026 cereal harvest was adversely affected by below-average precipitation and above-average temperatures.
Deterioration of the global situation
According to estimates by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, 218 million people in South Asia, including Iran, were undernourished in 2023–2025 — approximately one-third of the global total. The global Global Hunger Index score rose to 18.1 in 2026 from 17.6 in 2018.
The report states that hunger has worsened in 32 countries since 2018, while 57 states are not on track to achieve even a low level of hunger by 2030. Three of the index’s four indicators have deteriorated: undernourishment, child stunting and child wasting. Only the child mortality indicator declined slightly.
The authors named armed conflicts between states and frequent extreme weather events among the factors. They also linked rising costs of fuel, transportation and fertilizers to the war in Iran and disruptions to shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. The war of the Russian Federation — an aggressor state — against Ukraine and export restrictions through the Black Sea could raise wheat prices, according to the report. At the same time, international spending on food security has fallen to 2016–2017 levels.
