THE adage ‘desperate times call for desperate measures’ seems apt for the state of Pakistan’s worsening rural-urban education divide. In a country where the education budget is lower than the minimum global standard of 4 per cent of GDP, where 23 million children remain out of school and where the female literacy rate is 52.8pc, the future looks extremely bleak. Pakistan ranks last on the World Economic Forum’s 2025 Global Gender Gap Index, largely
Child Rights in Focus
The report Legal Aid Mapping and Policy Reform on Child Protection in the Brick Kiln Industry, produced by PILER and the Sindh Human Rights Commission, explores child and bonded labour in Sindh’s brick kilns and the gaps in legal aid and justice. Despite existing laws and international commitments like the UNCRC and ILO Conventions 138 and 182, thousands of children remain trapped in exploitative, debt-based labour, denied education and safety. The study reviews federal
Matric board in search of cost effective software for checking papers KARACHI: The results of the 2025 annual matric examinations will be declared by July 31, said the chairman of the Board of Secondary Education Karachi (BSEK), Ghulam Hussain Soho, on Friday. However, he added that in case of any unforeseen technical or administrative delay, results will be announced in the first week of August. Speaking to The Express Tribune, the BSEK chief said
The Special Investigation Unit (SIU) has rescued a four-year-old boy from Keamari and arrested three suspected kidnappers — a married couple and the man’s mother — said SIU SSP Shoaib Memon at a press conference at his office on 17-July-2025. SSP Memon said ringleader Jameel Burhan was operating a gang with his wife Meera and mother Mumtaz Begum, alias Pirani, and they kidnapped young boys and girls to use them in schemes involving fake
MINGORA: The body of a missing child was recovered from the Swat River in Barikot tehsil of Swat district, 21 days after he was swept away in a tragic drowning incident. Rescue 1122 Swat had been conducting a continuous and intensive search operation since June 27. Today, their efforts concluded with the recovery of the last remaining missing victim identified as Abdullah from Sialkot. The tragic incident occurred on June 27 when 17 people
LAHORE: Chinese Consul General Zhao Shiren on 17th July announced the sponsorship of uniform, shoes, school bags and stationery for 1,300 newly enrolled children in south Punjab. He was addressing the ‘Zero Out-of-School Children’ campaign as the chief guest in Multan. The event began with a guard of honour by Scouts, followed by a lively performance by schoolgirls waving Pakistani and Chinese flags to the beat of drums. Mr Shiren expressed full support for
City reels under wave of gun violence as public outrage grows KARACHI: Four children have been killed and several other people have been injured by stray bullets in different neighbourhoods of the metro over the past six weeks, sparking widespread anger among Karachiites. In the latest incident, 11-year-old Zainab was fatally shot while she slept on the rooftop of her home in Mastan Chali. According to police, a stray bullet pierced her chest, killing
ISLAMABAD: A parliamentary committee on 17th July recommended that both national and provincial governments establish a uniform legal marriage age of 18 years for both men and women. A meeting of the Committee on Gender of Mainstreaming, held here, observed that this change will help reduce health risks associated with early marriage, promote gender equality, and enhance educational and economic opportunities for young women. According to a statement issued here, chairperson of the committee
Public Schools with Daycare Facility by Region and Gender Region Boys (%) Girls (%) Total (%) National 1.85 2.8 2.22 Punjab 5.46 5.08 5.26 Sindh 0.9 1.38 1.01 Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 0.17 0.45 0.28 Balochistan 0 0 0 Islamabad Capital Territory 3.47 14.66 8.91 Source: PES 2023-24
LAHORE: A woman was allegedly kidnapped along with her three children in the Sundar area here the other day. The police lodged a first information report (FIR) on the complaint of the woman’s father Mohammad Rafique, against unknown kidnappers and launched investigations into the incident. The police reports suggested that Rukshana had gone along with her children Fatima (10), Mahnoor (7), and Ahmad (5), out of the city on July 13. A police official
Police have arrested a lift operator for allegedly sexually assaulting a 10-year-old boy in an elevator of the operation theatre complex of the Dr Ruth KM Pfau Civil Hospital Karachi. The incident reportedly took place at the Civil Hospital Karachi, where a lift operator allegedly sexually assaulted a minor boy inside the elevator. Police registered a case at the Eidgah Police Station based on a complaint filed by the child’s father. In the FIR,
Islamabad: The Federal Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education (FBISE) declared the results for Secondary School Certificate (Part I & II) 2025 annual exams on 16-July-2025, recording an overall pass percentage of 88.51. Notably, no student from public schools and colleges regulated by the Federal Directorate of Education featured among the top achievers in any group, raising concerns about the state of public education in Islamabad. The exams began on April 25 and concluded