The Covid 19 Pandemic and Food Security in Pakistan

Pakistan currently faces its worse social and economic crises amidst COVID19 pandemic. The nationwide lockdown, desert locust attack, and rains have further exacerbated the economic crises, particularly raising food prices, unemployment, poverty and endangered food security of the public. This paper ascertain the ongoing pandemic, food crises, and concludes that the corona pandemic, combined with other factors such floods, locust attack and delayed decision making, caused a nation-wide food insecurity crises, particularly affecting the agricultural, and livestock sector followed by food supply chains. Similarly, the higher risk factors towards Food security are increased retail prices of food items, combined with reduced incomes, meaning that more and more households have to cut down on the quantity and quality of their food consumption. It is believed that this situation would otherwise be averted, if proper and timely interventions were taken. On the recommendations side, priority should be given to address underlying food security crises, by diversifying agricultural sector, subsidizing food items, tackling viral spread by strengthening health system, improve food and price surveillance, reduce rural poverty, in particular by provision of more and decent jobs in the rural economy, extending social protection to all, facilitating and promoting the formalization of the informal economy, labor rights, leverage tech and private-public partnership to curtail Food insecurity amidst covid19 crises.