KARACHI: The Pakistan Medical Association (PMA) has warned that Pakistan is facing a full-scale humanitarian and public health emergency as millions of children and women suffer from acute malnutrition amid rising food insecurity, inflation, climate-related challenges, and shrinking international assistance.
In a statement issued following the release of the Global Nutrition Report 2026 titled “Integrating Food and Health Systems for Climate-Resilient Nutrition,” PMA Secretary General Dr. Abdul Ghafoor Shoro said the report's warnings about the combined impact of climate shocks, inflation, and public health pressures were no longer theoretical concerns but an unfolding reality across Pakistan.
The PMA stated that more than 80 percent of Pakistan's population is now unable to afford a nutritionally adequate diet due to historic inflation and disruptions in food supply chains, far exceeding global averages highlighted in the report.
According to the association, recent data indicates that more than 2.71 million children aged between six and 59 months in 45 rural districts of Sindh, Balochistan, and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa are currently suffering from acute malnutrition. Of these, approximately 706,000 children are affected by Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM), considered the most dangerous form of wasting.
The PMA further noted that around 232,000 pregnant and breastfeeding women across the country are also facing acute malnutrition, creating serious risks for maternal health and increasing the likelihood of long-term stunting and poor health outcomes among future generations.
The association expressed particular concern over the situation in Sindh, which accounts for nearly 44 percent of the country's acute malnutrition burden, affecting approximately 1.18 million children. It said that 11 out of 12 analyzed districts in the province are classified in Critical IPC Phase 4 wasting, indicating severe food consumption gaps, extremely high levels of acute malnutrition, and elevated mortality risks.
Referring to the Global Nutrition Report, the PMA warned that reductions in Official Development Assistance (ODA) could deprive millions of vulnerable children worldwide of lifesaving nutrition interventions. It said Pakistan is already experiencing the consequences of declining international support and stressed that reductions in nutrition programmes would result in preventable deaths among children.
The association emphasized that dependence on clinic-based therapeutic feeding centres alone is inadequate, particularly in areas affected by seasonal diseases, shortages of pediatric medicines, and climate-related damage to infrastructure that restricts access to healthcare services.
As the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals deadline approaches, the PMA called on the federal and provincial governments to move beyond policy commitments and implement fully funded interventions to address the crisis.
The association urged authorities to link social protection programmes, including the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP), with targeted nutrition and healthcare services, expand mobile health clinics in remote and climate-affected areas, implement large-scale food fortification initiatives, provide micronutrient supplementation to pregnant and lactating women, and redirect agricultural subsidies towards affordable and nutrient-rich food production.
Dr. Abdul Ghafoor Shoro said investment in nutrition was not only a moral obligation but also an economic necessity, noting that every dollar invested in reducing undernutrition generates an estimated return of 23 dollars. He warned that failure to act would undermine Pakistan's future workforce, reduce national productivity, and place an even greater burden on the country's healthcare system.
The PMA called for the urgent development of a resilient and integrated nutrition and healthcare system capable of protecting vulnerable populations before future climate-related disasters further aggravate the crisis.
