Local communities’ vulnerability to climate hazards has been evident in Sindh province in recent years. Droughts and water scarcity have contributed to reduced agricultural output and rising food prices.2119 ACAPS identified drought as a ‘critical driver’ of food insecurity in Sindh in 2025. In addition, severe flooding in southern Pakistan between late 2024 and early 2025 resulted in the damage of crops in Sindh, which led to further food insecurity in the region.2120 The Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) reported in its 2024-25 Household Integrated Economic Survey (HIES) that 29.42 % of households in Sindh were affected by ‘moderate or severe’ food insecurity, including 6.3 % experiencing severe food insecurity.2121
According to the Alert for Price Spikes (ALPS) 2122 price measuring system, moong lentils2123 and sugar were classified as ‘stressed’ commodities in Karachi as of February 2026. Rice (coarse and broken Basmati), wheat and wheat flour were classified as ‘alerted’. For instance, the price for wheat was 105 Pakistani rupees [approximately EUR 0.3] per kilogram and for coarse rice 171 Pakistani rupees [approximately EUR 0.5], while the average wage for non-qualified was 1478 Pakistani rupees [approximately EUR 4.5] per day.2124 In January 2026, the news portal Minute Mirror reported about an intensifying ‘wheat and flour price crisis’ in Karachi.2125
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Toheed, M. and Awan, J., Where the margins break first: Pakistan’s unequal battle with climate change, Dawn, 20 May 2025, url
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ACAPS, Pakistan: Key crises to watch, 12 June 2025, url, pp. 9, 12
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Pakistan, PBS, Household Integrated Economic Survey (HIES) Provincial, 2024-25, December 2025, url, p. 270. The HIES survey was conducted between September 2024 and June 2025. The figures on food security in Pakistan are higher for rural areas than for urban areas at country level but are not broken down by province in this report. Pakistan, PBS, Household Integrated Economic Survey (HIES) Provincial, 2024-25, December 2025, url, p. II, 270
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The Alert for Price Spikes (ALPS)-system is an indicator that measures monthly price levels against projected seasonal price patterns, to evaluate a commodity market according to how strongly it is affected by unusually elevated prices. Based on this comparison, commodities are assigned to one of four categories: normal, stress, alert, or crisis. WFP, Data Visualized, Pakistan-Prices, Commodities in the selected Market(s), last updated February 2026, url
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Moong lentils are a small, yellow type of lentils.
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WFP, Data Visualized, Pakistan-Prices, Commodities in the selected Market(s), last updated February 2026, url. Set filters to Karachi.
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Minute Mirror, Karachi flour prices likely to rise further, 18 January 2026, url