A doctor gives medical assistance to flood-affected girl at Sayed Abdullah Shah Institute of Medical Sciences in Sehwan, Sindh. — Reuters/File

• Pakistan ranks 106th out of 122 countries on GHI 2026.
• 9.8% of children wasted in Pakistan, shows GHI report.
• 5.6% of children in country die before age of five: GHI.

Pakistan has ranked second-worst in South Asia on the Global Hunger Index (GHI) 2026, behind only Afghanistan, highlighting the country’s worsening food insecurity and malnutrition challenges.

“With a 2026 Global Hunger Index score of 25.5, Pakistan has a serious level of hunger,” according to the report published on the GHI website.

Only Afghanistan has a higher score than Pakistan in the South Asia region, with a score of 28.6 on the index. Across South Asia, the regional GHI score is 23.5, while the global score is 18.1.

Pakistan’s score has, however, fallen from 36.2 in 2000 to 25.5 in 2026, showing substantial long-term improvement, according to the report.

The country ranks 106th out of 122 countries globally with sufficient data to calculate GHI 2026 scores, as per the report.

Flood victims gather to receive food handout in a camp following rains and floods during the monsoon season in Sehwan, Sindh, September 14, 2022. — Reuters

Pakistan’s GHI score is based on the value of undernourishment, child stunting, child wasting and child mortality.

Undernourishment refers to the share of the population whose caloric intake is insufficient, while child stunting indicates the share of children under the age of five who have low height for their age, reflecting chronic undernutrition.

Child wasting refers to the share of children under the age of five who have low weight for their height, reflecting acute undernutrition, and child mortality refers to the number of children who die before their fifth birthday.

According to the report, 16.1% of Pakistan’s population is malnourished, while 33.6% of its children under five are stunted.

This photo shows girls taking bread. — AFP/File

It showed that 9.8% of the children are wasted, while 5.6% of the children in the country die before the age of five.

The report comes just days after the International Monetary Fund projected the country’s inflation rate to rise to 9.9% in the fiscal year 2026-27.

In its World Economic Outlook (WEO) report released on Tuesday, the lender projected inflation to increase to 9.9% in the current fiscal year from 7.1% in 2025-26.