{
  "id": 14906650,
  "title": "Pakistan 2nd-Worst Hungry Country",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/16/pakistan-2nd-worst-hungry-country",
  "topic": "tech",
  "section": "Tech",
  "published": "2026-10-16T08:13:29.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "ProPakistani",
    "slug": "propakistani",
    "url": "https://propakistani.pk/2026/10/16/pakistan-2nd-worst-hungry-country/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Pakistan has earned the dubious distinction of being the second-worst country in South Asia for hunger, trailing only Afghanistan, as revealed by the 2026 Global Hunger Index (GHI). The country's hunger score stands at 25.5 out of 100, placing it at 106th position among the 122 nations for which adequate data is available, indicating ongoing food insecurity and child malnutrition. While Pakistan's hunger score has shown improvement over the long term, slipping from 36.2 in 2000 to 25.5 in 2026, it has regrettably worsened between 2018 and 2026, making it one of just two South Asian nations, alongside Afghanistan, to experience this decline since 2018. The report indicates that 16.1 percent of Pakistan's population is undernourished, consuming insufficient calories, and 33.6 percent of children under five are stunted due to chronic undernutrition, while 9.8 percent suffer from wasting, a sign of acute malnutrition. The under-five mortality rate is 5.6 percent. The report attributes Pakistan's food security issues to economic instability, persistent high food prices, and climate-related shocks. Severe monsoon rains and flash floods in 2025 displaced over six million people, damaging agricultural lands and infrastructure, while reduced household income has impeded food access. South Asia's overall GHI score of 23.5 is the second-highest among regions, trailing only sub-Saharan Africa's 27.5. Afghanistan scores 28.6, India 24.1, Bangladesh 19.2, Nepal 14.5, and Sri Lanka 10.2. Approximately 218 million people in South Asia, including Iran, were undernourished from 2023 to 2025, accounting for nearly one-third of the global total. While the region has made significant strides since 2000, most of the improvement occurred before 2018. Since then, undernourishment rates have remained relatively stable, but child wasting has worsened to 15.8 percent, the highest in the world. Globally, the GHI score increased to 18.1 in 2026 from 17.6 in 2018, marking a reversal of the progress made in the preceding decade. This deterioration is attributed to concurrent conflicts, climate extremes, economic shocks, and disruptions to global food and agricultural supply chains. Hunger has intensified in 32 countries since 2018, with 36 countries grappling with serious levels, and eight facing alarming levels. The report warns that ongoing conflict, surging food and transport costs, extreme weather events, and dwindling humanitarian funding are exacerbating food system vulnerabilities. It also cautions that an intensifying El Niño could further jeopardize food and nutrition security in vulnerable regions. The Global Hunger Index assessment is based on data spanning the 2021-2025 period and utilizes four indicators: undernourishment, child stunting, child wasting, and child mortality.",
  "summary": "Pakistan has the second-highest hunger score in South Asia, behind only Afghanistan, according to the 2026 Global Hunger Index (GHI), … Read More The post Pakistan 2nd-Worst Hungry Country appeared first on ProPakistani .",
  "key_points": [
    "Pakistan ranks 2nd worst in South Asia for hunger, trailing Afghanistan",
    "Hunger score 25.5 out of 100, 106th among 122 nations",
    "33.6% of children under five suffer from wasting due to acute malnutrition"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}