perspective-child rights - Page 4

Insights From the 2023 Census Report

The 2023 Census conducted by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics released its complete report in July 2024 indicates that the total population of Pakistan is 240 million out of which the population of children under 18 is 112 Million (47% of the total population). Children Population (under 18) Population under 18 Total Male Female Transgender Pakistan 112,472,700 58,099,978 54,370,121 2,601…

The Case for Teaching Punjabi in Schools

THE chief minister of Punjab, Ms Maryam Nawaz, has said that Punjabi will be taught across schools in the province. This was announced at the Punjab Culture Day ceremony last week. It is a welcome announcement. Some 80 million people speak Punjabi in Pakistan and, worldwide, Punjabi speakers number around…

The Role of Parents in Shaping Pakistan’s Education Future

PAKISTAN’S education system faces significant challenges on two fronts. Firstly, there is…

Ghost Schools

KARACHI: Apropos the letter “Ghost Teachers” published on September 19, 2024, the…

Polio Pains

BEING one of the two countries — out of 194 member states of the World Health Organisation — that have not been able to eradicate polio is a persistent national embarrassment; 192 countries have managed to get rid of the virus, which cripples children for life. These include the poorest…

Education On The Brink

The global climate crisis is wreaking havoc on education systems, leaving millions of children vulnerable to a future of uncertainty. Across the world, 242 million students experienced disruptions to their education in 2024 due to climate-induced hazards, as detailed in Unicef’s Global Snapshot of Climate-Related School Disruptions in 2024. Among…

Climate Change Shocks Emptied South Asia’s Schools

Half of the quarter-billion students who faced academic interruptions were in India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Afghanistan KARACHI: In South Asia, the climate crisis has made monsoons fiercer, heatwaves more severe, and floods more relentless —transforming nature’s wrath from a distant threat into an immediate reality that reshapes landscapes, disrupts lives, and…

Nutrition Challenge

WHEN a country’s children go hungry, its future withers. In Pakistan, where over 40pc of children under five are stunted, nearly 18pc are wasted, and more than half suffer from anaemia, malnutrition threatens to undermine a generation. For a middle-income country with nuclear capabilities and significant agricultural output, such statistics…

Where Is The Tender Face Of Justice?

Juvenile justice system addresses the needs of children which are in conflict with law. It provides child-friendly procedures and diversion instead of formal/hard judicial proceedings. It focuses on rehabilitation and reintegration of juvenile offenders into society. The specific mechanisms for administering juvenile justice have varied over time among societies. However, the concept…

Against Children

WHY is this country so against its own children and its own future? Are you surprised by this question? Look at some of the statistics and facts below and see if the question is still surprising. Some 40 percent of our children are said to be malnourished, that is, four…

Early-years Skills

IN the past centuries, many systems of education have been tried and tested around the world for early childhood education. Among these, the Montessori method, with its emphasis on freedom to learn and its hands-on approach, became very popular. The Reggio Emelia approach, with its focus on taking cues from…

Biometrics For Kids

ALTHOUGH the move has caused panic among weary parents mortified at the thought of carting their children to Nadra offices, the interior ministry’s recent directive to incorporate biometric features into Form B for 10-18-year-olds is not without its merits. While the immediate catalyst for this decision remains unclear, historical instances…

Learning From A Child

MY daughter, who is seven and a half, is my latest teacher. She is in grade two. She gets a fair bit of homework and she is kind enough that she lets me sit with her when she is doing her homework. I started sitting with her to see if…

Climate Resolutions 2025

2025 will be a year of new openings and possibilities for Pakistan. Several initiatives started during the outgoing year will approach completion and offer opportunities to integrate economic and climate priorities. For Pakistan, economic and climate vulnerabilities reinforce each other and hence they must be addressed simultaneously. We will learn…