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\ufeff<\/strong>At the top end, in the period\u00a0from\u00a0last\u00a0December\u00a0to March 2026 around 1.25 million people will be in \u2018emergency\u2019\u00a0levels of acute food insecurity,\u00a0<\/strong>characterised by\u00a0<\/strong>large food gaps and\u00a0high levels\u00a0of\u00a0acute malnutrition<\/strong>\u00a0–\u00a0 the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification\u00a0(IPC)\u00a0report\u00a0revealed.\u00a0<\/p>\n Immediate lifesaving\u00a0assistance\u00a0is needed to prevent a \u201ccatastrophe\u201d for the over a million people in emergency levels of food insecurity.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Residual 2025\u00a0monsoon flood impacts<\/strong>,\u00a0drought<\/strong>, and\u00a0localised insecurity<\/strong>\u00a0have weakened agriculture and pastoral livelihoods, reduced production, disrupted markets, and squeezed coping capacity.\u00a0<\/p>\n Seasonal factors have also added to the crisis with the\u00a0lean season\u00a0<\/strong>(December to February) reducing farm labour and income opportunities and in some areas\u00a0harsh winter conditions<\/strong>\u00a0have further constrained access and livelihoods.\u00a0<\/p>\n In particular, food\u00a0access has been constrained in some areas by\u00a0weak purchasing power<\/strong>,\u00a0market dependence<\/strong>,\u00a0price volatility<\/strong>, and\u00a0indebtedness<\/strong>. Wheat flour has also been flagged as especially concerning during the lean season.\u00a0<\/p>\n Variations in conditions have created larger concentrations of hunger in certain regions.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n In the IPC analysis, which covers 45 vulnerable regions in Pakistan and around 15 per cent of the total population, the\u00a0Balochistan\u00a0province had the highest proportional burden with\u00a025 per cent<\/strong>\u00a0of the\u00a0analyzed\u00a0population in at least\u00a0high levels\u00a0of food insecurity.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n In the Sindh region over 3 million\u00a0people are in\u00a0high levels\u00a0of food insecurity. While in the\u00a0Musakhel, Zhob, Kachi, Tank and\u00a0Torghar\u00a0districts<\/strong>, 30 per cent of people are in at least\u00a0high levels\u00a0of food insecurity.\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0<\/p>\n For the upcoming period\u00a0from\u00a0April to September<\/strong>, the report projects\u00a06.7 million people\u00a0<\/strong>to face\u00a0high levels\u00a0of food insecurity or more, a decrease of\u00a0855,000<\/strong>\u00a0from the current period.\u00a0<\/p>\n Though some of the drivers are expected to persist\u00a0\u2013 such as\u00a0high staple prices<\/strong>,\u00a0climatic risks<\/strong>,\u00a0insecurity<\/strong>, and\u00a0cross-border trade\u00a0disruptions\u00a0\u2013 <\/strong>seasonal factors\u00a0such as winter crop harvesting and\u00a0Eid-related livestock sales\u00a0may temporarily ease pressure.\u00a0<\/p>\n Though the numbers recorded decreased from last year, the report warns that comparison is misleading as the geographic coverage has dropped from 68 districts to 45. The report\u00a0maintains\u00a0that the prevalence of those in\u00a0high levels\u00a0of malnutrition\u00a0remains\u00a0similar.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\nDrivers of crisis\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0<\/h2>\n
Regional differences<\/strong>\u00a0<\/h2>\n
Potential for improvement\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0<\/h2>\n
Recommendations\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0<\/h2>\n